by Michelle Sproule | The main objective of this website is to scout out and promote the things that make Vancouver such a sweet place to be. We do this with an emphasis on the city’s independent spirit to foster a sense of connectedness within and between our communities, and to introduce our readers to the people who grow and cook our food, play the raddest tunes in our better venues, create our most interesting art, and design everything from what we wear to the spaces we inhabit. The Scout List is our carefully considered, first rate agenda of super awesome things that we’re either doing, wishing that we could do, or conspiring to do this week. From our calendar to yours…

AFFORDABLE ART | If you like the idea of furnishing your walls with original art but don’t have a full-blown art collector’s budget, you’ll want to check out Uncovered Vancouver this weekend. The collaborative effort from a group of 13 students from Vancouver’s Visual College of Arts and Design will fill the walls of The Chinatown Experiment with 26 pieces of original art priced between $100 and $250. Art work will be available for purchase beginning at noon on Thursday until 7pm. Organisers aim to sell every one of the 26 pieces by 7pm and then throw a party to celebrate (cover for the party portion of the event will include music courtesy of Chapel Sound and Cariboo Brewing beer with proceeds going to the Downtown Eastside Women’s Centre)
Thu, Mar. 14 | Sale 12-7pm, Party 7-11pm | The Chinatown Experiment (434 Columbia St) | $5 | DETAILS

ST PATRICKS DAY CRAIC | Craic is an Irish term for “mischievous fun, entertainment, good conversation and company”, and a proper one is often accompanied by a wee bit of cleansing ale. In anticipation of St. Patrick’s Day, a couple of fun-loving Vancouverites have rallied together to put on a Craic at the Anza Club this Friday night. The evening includes a set from Celtic band The Halifax Wharf Rats, $3 Bowen Island beer and lots of beer pong. That has all the makings of a good Friday night, wouldn’t you say?
Fri, Mar. 15 | 8pm | Anza Club (3 W 8 Ave) | $20 at the door | DETAILS 

FIGHT CLUB | The Rio Theatre is showing a sweet line-up of modern cult classics for their Friday Late Night Movies series this month. This Friday night brings the original 35mm print of Fight Club. $2 off the price of admission if you arrive in costume, so break out the red leather jackets and sunglasses and put those two bucks toward a cold beer (for the shiners) and some buttered popcorn.
Fri, Mar. 15 | 11pm | Rio Theatre (1660 E Broadway) | $8 | DETAILS

WHISK(E)Y TASTING | Fuck line ups, green beer and sparkling, shamrock-adorned hats. Celebrate Ireland’s patron saint on the eve of the madness known as St Patrick’s Day with a civilized whisk(e)y tasting at The Shebeen. A seat will get you a deep flight of Jameson whiskies, a traditional meal of house-made corned beef with colcannon (cabbage and potatoes), and a dessert of Okanagan fruit bread pudding with whiskey cream. Don’t wait on this! Score tickets before it’s sold out!
Sat, Mar. 16 | 7pm | The Shebeen at The Irish Heather (210 Carrall St) | DETAILS 

NIGHT FOREST | Shadows, noises, animal calls and the sound of snapping branches – walking through Pacific Spirit Regional Park at night can be an intimidating prospect! It’s best to do it in a group. Follow a guide and add more than a few cheerful lanterns and all of a sudden you have a pretty magical Saturday night. That opportunity presents itself this weekend when The Pacific Spirit Regional Park Society hosts Night Quest. A gentle 2km walk along a lantern-lit trail, this is an outdoor evening of storytelling, campfire music and a bit of wildlife education. Wear your gumboots, pack a flashlight and bring a travel mug as well as a pocket full of change to use at the pop-up Girl Guide concession. Read that again: Girl Guide concession!
Sat, Mar. 16 | 7-10pm | Pacific Spirit Regional Park, 16th Ave Park Entrance | DETAILS

NEWS! | The Presentation House Satellite Gallery is currently exhibiting a show comprised of hundreds of thousands of images taken from the news photography archives of The Vancouver Sun and Province newspapers. Not only do the walls of the Satellite evidence a progression of the style and craft of news photography, they also tell the story of the evolution of a city through the eyes of its many news photographers (1880s to the 1990s). This weekend the Satellite Gallery presents a panel discussion with some of those very same photographers!
Sat, Mar. 16 | 3pm | Satellite Gallery (560 Seymour St) | DETAILS

BUY LOCAL | The Winter Farmers Market fills the Nat Bailey Stadium parking lot on Saturday. Stinging nettles are in season and there are usually some kicking around the market. Full of iron and tasting like spring, pick them up and feast upon them while you can. Also hook yourself up with hearty root vegetables, fresh bread, dried fruits and scores of other locally-grown goodies.
Sat, Mar. 16 | 10am – 2pm | East Parking Lot of Nat Bailey Stadium 4601 Ontario St | DETAILS

OWLS | Hustle down to the Stanley Park Pavilion this Sunday to learn about owls. In addition to imparting all kinds of birds-of-prey knowledge, representatives of The Stanley Park Ecology Society will also provide you with specimens to explore as you learn about unique characteristics and adaptations of these local birds. You’ll even get the chance to dissect owl pellets to see what critters ended up as an owl’s meal. Pre-registration is suggested for this popular event. Get yourself sorted by sending an email to [email protected].
Sun, Mar. 17 | 1:30 pm – 3:30 pm | Salmonberry Room -Stanley Park Pavilion | DETAILS

UPCYCLED URBANISM | This Sunday, the Museum of Vancouver plays host to the third in a series of four workshops aimed at brainstorming new public spaces. Professional planners, architects, makers and thinkers will be on hand to facilitate a collaborative process that uses hands-on exercises to explore ways in which physical infrastructure in public space can influence how we connect with others. Participants will use modular blocks, imagination and teamwork to design Vancouver-inspired spaces aimed at encouraging a stronger, more vibrant community. Later this summer (July), groups will have the opportunity to come together again to build their creations at a large-scale outdoor event.
Sun, Mar. 17 | 2pm | Museum of Vancouver (1100 Chestnut St.) | $12 | DETAILS 

WHALE MIGRATION | This is migration season for Pacific Grey whales. They’re on their way from their breeding grounds off of Mexico’s Baja Peninsula to their summer digs in the Bering Sea. That’s over 20,000 Greys cruising up the coast of BC this spring, with the bulk of them doing it over the next few weeks. With a front row seat to the migration route, the towns of Tofino and Ucluelet are now in their 27th year of holding The Pacific Rim Whale Festival. It’s a 10 day whale watching and learning bonanza that celebrates whales and marine nature as well as those aspects of West Coast living unique to the region. In addition to free whale watching stations and scores of whale watching boat and float plane tours, the Pacific Rim Whale Festival offers everything from marine life lectures and walks to storytelling (with artist, Roy Henry Vickers), an Electric Gumboot Bash, and everything in between.
Sat, Mar. 16 – Sun, Mar. 24 | Tofino and Ucluelet | DETAILS 

Check the Globe & Mail every Thursday for our Special Weekend Edition of the Scout List

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Michelle Sproule grew up in Kitsilano and attended University in Australia and the University of Victoria before receiving her graduate degree in Library Sciences from The University of Toronto. She lives in beautiful Strathcona and enjoys wandering aimlessly through the city’s shops and streets with her best friend – a beat up, sticky, grimy, and uncooperative camera.

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