Re: Best City in the World
 

Ah google helps and misleads...your link relates only to city owned parks. Pacific Spirit, for instance, is a Regional Park as it falls on the Endowment Lands. The park is about 2000 acres about 10 -15 mins from downtown (actually much bigger than Stanley Park). UBC Botanical Park and Foreshore park are two others on the lands not owned by the city.

And of course greater Vancouver applies...the north shore for instance is a mere hop and a skip across the LGB (2 min drive bit like taking Tower Bridge over the Thames but only a fair bit longer) and is home to 180,000 souls and is very much an extension of Vancouver. If one were to simply include Mount Seymour Provincial Park and the Districts' local parks alone there's another 2400 acres and the Lynn Water Headway is another 3700 hectares (although to be fair some of the trails are very technical and not for Granny). all with in 20 - 30 mins of the centre of Vancouver. And no it's not all untamed wilderness....i have ridden horses, hiked and ridden mountain bikes through a hell of a lot of it.

By my guess that is something like 17000 acres of accessible green space within 30 mins (likely less) of downtown for a mere 800,000 souls....I didn't bother including the North Van City Waterfront Park, Cap Park, Upper Delbrook, Spirit trail, Bowden Powell Trail, Ambleside, The Chief or the Grind or Whytcliff or the three ski mountains and all the related green space...all within 10 - 25 mins of downtown.

There are another 21 regional Parks. Then there is golden ears a Provincial Park at about 600 square Kms or 370 miles if you prefer or more than half the size of London.....about 50 mins from the centre of Vancouver proper.

Then there are Belcarra park, Burke Mountain (38000 hectares) and if one is into Alpine pursuits there is Garibaldi ....and so it goes.

And I did n't bother with the Sunshine Coast or the Gulf Islands or the truly incredible drive from the North Shore to Whistler (about 1.5 hours) passing amazing parks, lakes and water falls......and the majestic Fjords of Howe Sound.

And that is largely in about 40 - 45 mins from downtown at the upper end...look at an ariel map and you will be able to see why.

Sorry chump.....as I said "accessible and uncrowded green space" to suggest anything less is as silly as suggesting Vancouver has more art space than London.

No chavs in sight but one may see a Bob cat, Cougar, Elk or black bear.....

Re: Best City in the World
 

Down boy!

Re: Best City in the World
 

Where does it say that? The chart shows that 32% of the land in Vancouver is taken up with "Single Family" housing, we don't assume that that's all public housing, why should we think "Park & Other Open Space" means only city owned open space?

Whistler, the majestic fjords of Howe Sound, the Sunshine Coast and the Serrengeti Wildlife Preserve are not within the bounds of the City of Vancouver and so don't count in the 10%.

Re: Best City in the World
 

ooh I only posted a simple article...see what I started :blink:

Re: Best City in the World
 

Vancouver is a great place to live, if you have sufficient income, just not a great city. There are many, many ways to enjoy the great outdoors, including wilderness areas, within a very short time from most of the urban area. Much of this is accessible by very reasonably priced and efficient transit, at least to the North Shore areas.

Just be aware that the only way you are going to get from downtown Vancouver to Manning Park in "about an hour" or to The Chief within 25 minutes is either by helicopter or maybe by using blues and twos. That's assuming you get over the famed Lions Gate bridge in 2 minutes. On a recent Sunday afternoon it took me roughly 45 minutes to travel the mile from the highway to Park Royal.

For fishing, or at least crabbing, off a pier head to Ambleside. For chav-spotting try any lakeside beach/launch in the LFV (Cultus, Golden Ears) on a summer weekend.

Just to be clear, I like living here, but if you are looking to move here look at the underbelly as well.

Re: Best City in the World
 

Canada has a 'Sunshine Coast'? :confused:

No equivalent of the Trades Descriptions Act in Canada then?

Re: Best City in the World
 

Has anyone mentioned Eastbourne? They've refurbished the pier and it has the world-famous carpet gardens and interesting things like an old Napoleonic Wars redoubt. I really like it :thumbup: Hastings is best for slot-machines though.

Re: Best City in the World
 

i give up.....it is greater vancouver you know and I dont seem to recall saying Vancouver proper,,,,you are splitting hairs beyond anything remotely intelligent. Pacific spirity park is in vancouver but on teh endowment lands...still only 10 mins from downtown and 2000 aceres seems pretty accessible to me....north shore 10 mins the other way (yes depending on traffic)...do you qualify green space in london by only the square mile?......If one is only to incude vancouver proper you are reducing a region of 2.4 milllion to 600 K...smaller than Cow town and Deadmonton.

My point was accessible green space ........i think I have proved that with 17000 acres within 25 mins and that is just Vancouver and the North Shore (where I live)..

Re: Best City in the World
 

not sure I mentioned manning park....that is past hope is it not. I will conceede the chief ....yes the LGB is touchy.....i do live on the north shore you know;) very true on needing the dough.....

Re: Best City in the World
 

well what are your views.....do you consider the north shore out of bounds as it is part of the large metro area or how about pacific spirit......

Re: Best City in the World
 

My view is categorically no! I consider the North Shore so lovely I am moving there next weekend! And I have spent many a happy Sat afternoon (and gruelling Sat morning during bootcamp) in Pacific Spirit as it is up the road from where I am!
We love Kits as you know, but the Cheltenham bird in me craves space and a driveway!! we are moving to Deep Cove, so I totally get the North Shore and it has become our haunt.
This discussion has got bizarre in a lot of places and I have struggled to follow. We love Vancouver, I can see it for its good and not so good, I miss the beauty of the Cotswolds, but every night when I drive home from work up McDonald and I come over the brow of the hill near 33rd the view takes my breath away.

Oh and I just got back from Rogers...and the Canucks won tonight..more beer anyone?

Re: Best City in the World
 

You ol' goalpost mover, you! Way back Vancouver was a verdant paradise, now it has parks in the suburbs. Still, I'm sure it's lovely in a soggy, slightly sterile kind of a way.

Re: Best City in the World
 

OMG I came back on this morning and can't believe the London vs Vancouver green space arguement is still in full swing! :blink:

Can we just say that each city is unique and each has plenty of green space if you wish to use it?

I haven't been to Vancouver but I'm sure it's lovely. I have been to London and love it (wouldn't live there though)

The end :lol:

Re: Best City in the World
 

I can:rolleyes: :lol:

But if the personal comments dont stop it wont be going on much longer.

Nice to see Steves still checking in from time to time.. dont know why he deleted the post though, as it was a good point.

Re: Best City in the World
 

FWIW, "You ol' goalpost mover, you!" was meant in an affectionate, slight camp, manner. Had it been spoken it would have been accompanied by a wry smile, the way one might greet a child who's just teefed a chocolate bar, it's wrong, one cannot approve of it, but the audacity brings a wry smile. "Scamp" or "scallywag" might be similarly employed.

I assume "chump" was similarly lacking in malice.