Bellevue Underground Mine Tour

Brian took us to the Bellevue Underground Mine Tour in the Crows Nest Pass.

Bellevue was founded in 1905 on the flat land above the Bellevue Mine operated by West Canadian Collieries with a post office opening in 1907. …

An explosion in the Bellevue Mine during a partial afternoon shift on December 9th, 1910 killed 30 miners. In 1917 a fire destroyed most of Bellevue’s business section, followed by smaller fires in 1921 and 1922. …

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That was my first mine tour. Quite fascinating.

Let’s be thankful we’re not coal miners. It was a tough life.

NY writer likes Saskatoon

New York based travel writer Michael Kaplan is getting much love for his article on my second home town:

saskatoon--300x200
… next morning, we stroll across Broadway Bridge to the Broadway District, where cute shops and bakeries abound. We settle down at Broadway Roastery (broadwayroastery.com) for cups of strong coffee and locally baked muffins.

Then it’s back to the other side of the river for a quick run through Saskatoon Farmers Market (saskatoonfarmersmarket.com), where, inside, you get stunningly authentic Vietnamese summer rolls and perfectly gooey cinnamon buns, while brilliant cherries and sweet plums shipped up from Vancouver are to be had on the outside.

The whole thing is soundtracked by a busking guitarist cruising from the Eagles to Elvis to Merle Haggard. Alongside him, a grill man named Johnny Hollywood makes pretty good brats and burgers. …

read more – Canada’s ’Tooned in

Surprises in Saskatoon? You betcha!

minimalist housing

Mashable has a recent post detailing 11 Small Living Spaces.

Of those listed, I’m intrigued by the Looper. A glorified tent / pod.

485-square-foot pods
485-square-foot pods

nomadic-resorts-prefab-tent-looper-4.jpeg.492x0_q85_crop-smart

details – Nomadic Resorts

carry-on bag – Delsey Helium Shadow

Seems most of the suitcase manufacturers (Samsonite, Delsey, Targus, Victorinox, etc.) are offering similar products.

Of many near identical pieces of hand luggage on offer in Calgary, I ended up with this one.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Hard case, built-in TSA lock, good wheels.

This was one of the few with a decent laptop sleeve.

Absurdly the retail price on a unit like that is $300+. I paid about $120. It goes for about $100 on Amazon.

ultimate hostel bunk bed

This Autumn I’ll be back traveling internationally. Europe and possibly Asia.

On nights where I only need to sleep, you’ll find me in one of the cheapest dorm beds available.

Neil:


Staying in hostels is an excellent way of saving money on the road, the trouble is, sometimes they don’t provide the most comfortable nights rest. …

His proposed ultimate hostel bunk bed:

ultimatebunkbed

Specific features:

Personal safe. A safe place to keep your passport and wallet etc. It is not open by a key (easily lost/stolen), but rather my a combination code. Inside the safe a plug socket also resides so that your handheld electronic can be charged in safety.

Lockers for your rucksack underneath the bed. This also saves on space in the room.

An individual fan to combat heat.

An individual reading light.

A personal curtain. This affords you a little privacy and allows you to keep your reading light (above) on whilst others are trying to sleep. The curtain would also help block out some of the noise others in the room are making e.g. snoring.

Solid panels at each end of the bunk with towel rails attached. This will give the bunk a bit more of a sturdy frame. keep out some of the noise in the room and will also provide an obvious place to hang wet towels etc. Solves the problem of having someone elses wet towel overhanging your bunk.

Backpacks and Bunkbeds

I’ve had all of those features in some dorms, but never the personal safe. That would be expensive to install.

(via Matador)

Lonely Planet soon DEAD to me?

I love Lonely Planet.

But not — perhaps — for much longer.

The end of guide books? Lonely Planet lays off one-third of editorial staff

lonelyplanet

Venerable travel guide brand Lonely Planet, which has bounced from owner to owner in recent years, just announced some bad news: They’re slashing staff on three continents and getting rid of much of their content staff. Almost 100 jobs were slashed in Melbourne, Australia alone, and additional layoffs were made at Lonely Planet’s London and Oakland offices. …

Update: According to an email from a Lonely Planet publicist, “Print will continue to be part of the mix” for the company.

END OF AN ERA: LONELY PLANET SLASHES CONTENT JOBS

They say they’ll switch to more digital format, more user generated content.

The time’s not right. Yet.

Show me a worthy digital alternative to a Lonely Planet guidebook?

public transportation out of Seattle

Crazy good. So much better than most of the rest of the USA.

I took the train from SeaTac airport to the Seattle-Bremerton Ferry. It’s a breeze.

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To get all the way to Port Townsend from SeaTac costs is only about $6.25.

Want to get into Olympic National Park?

map-olympicsnorth

EASY.

My favourite way to get to Canada is by the inexpensive Black Ball ferry — Port Angeles to Victoria, BC. (90 minutes)