On 18 Feb 00, WAYNE WEBER wrote:
> I don't have the 1998 edition of Keith Taylor's "Birder's Guide to
> B.C." However, if it is similar to the first edition, it does not
> cover Vancouver Island. To get a guide to Vancouver Island, you will
> also have to buy the author's earlier "Birder's Guide to Vancouver
> Island". At a total price of about $40, this is a bit expensive for
> coverage of the whole province.

Good point. The 1998 edition still does not cover Vancouver Island.
Taylor's goal for "The Birder's Guide to British Columbia" was to
provide guide to seeing the birds of BC, not a comprehensive guide to
bird-finding sites. Buyers should beware of that distinction.

> Also-- with reference to Douglas Canning's remarks below-- no one
> should be surprised that distances are given in kilometres. Kilometres
> are the standard measure of distance in Canada and in most of the
> world except the U.S. If you plan on driving in Canada, get used to
> it!

My "big surprise" remark about kilometers was tongue-in-cheek, as in
"no surprise." Truth is, dealing with 'klicks' should be a no-brainer
for any observant driver. For decades most motor vehicle speedometer
faces have had both a mile and a kilometer scale. Most of us have a
conversion diagram staring us in the face when we're driving.

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Douglas Canning <dcanning at igc.org>
> To: Tweeters <tweeters at u.washington.edu>
> Date: Thursday, February 17, 2000 8:56 PM
> Subject: Re: British Columbia Birding Guide
>
>
> On 16 Feb 00, Irene Potter wrote:
> > Can anyone out there suggest a good, up-to-date guide to finding
> > places to bird in British Columbia? I would appreciate any
> > information that is available.
>
> One possibility is "The Birder's Guide to British Columbia" by Keith
> Taylor. (1998, Steller Press, Vancouver) I don't know where you'd get
> one down here; I bought mine for $19.95 Canadian in Grand Forks BC.
>
> This is not a comprehensive guide to BC birding sites. Rather, it's a
> driving tour of mostly south and central BC (plus a zinger up the
> Alaska Highway into southern Yukon) designed to enable a person to see
> all (well, most) of the birds of BC. There is a good species index to
> places they can be observed, but no index to place names.
>
> The maps depict only highway routes, therefore you must depend on the
> driving directions, which appear to be in the OK to pretty good range,
> to find specific sites. However, the distances are in kilometers (big
> surprise) so you'll need do some mental juggling.
>

****************
Douglas Canning
Olympia, Washington
dcanning at igc.org
****************