A no messing around guide to the coolest things to eat, drink and do in Vancouver and beyond. Community. Not clickbait.

The Scout List, Vol. 438

From our calendar to yours comes this carefully considered agenda of cool things we are doing, wishing we could do, or conspiring to do in Vancouver from September 20 to September 26, 2017. Please note that you can now get the Scout List – with a few extra pieces of intel included – sent to your inbox every Thursday. Sign up for your subscription in the sidebar.

MAKE | One of the greatest ways to celebrate the mid-Autumn moon is to hit the Renfrew Ravine Moon Festival (September 30th). Event organizers do an outstanding job of decorating the trees, bushes and streams of the ravine while festival goers show up with their own lanterns to participate in a slow-moving procession of awesome. The Still Moon Arts society is holding a number of lantern-making workshops between now and the festival. Check out the list of days and styles of instruction being offered and get imaginative. Now – Thu, Sept 28 | Various days and times | Slocan Park Fieldhouse (2750 E 29th Ave) | DETAILS

RUN | There’s a 10K run going on in East Van on Saturday. The motto of the run? “In the Eastside, with the Eastside and for the Eastside”. It travels through Gastown, Chinatown and East Van to raise money for a number of charities including the Downtown Eastside Women’s Centre, Watari Support and Counselling, Breakfast Club of Canada, and the Greater Vancouver Food Bank. While the run itself is already sold out, there’s always room to get out there and show your support by cheering runners on from the sidelines. What you shouldn’t do is try to drive anywhere that relies on Powell Street all the way up to Nanaimo on Saturday morning. Sat, Sept. 16 | 8:30am – 1pmish | Water St. / Powell St. | DETAILS

SIZZLER | If you didn’t get the chance to check out one of Sunday Cider‘s Sizzler events yet this summer, fear not! There’s still one more opportunity to get your fill of the season’s most deliciously fermented fruit beverages. On Saturday, September 16 you can expect five ciders to flow, music from the Pacific Rhythm Selectors playing and street food from Handtaste Ferments. The Sizzler is family and pet-friendly so head on down to the cidery for a rad send off to summer! Sat, Sept 16 | 1-8pm | Sunday Cider (outside) | 1575 Vernon Drive | Free Admission | DETAILS

FARM | The UBC Fall Fair goes down this weekend. Not only will there be the usual awesomeness of vendors selling everything from flowers and fruit to eggs and ice cream, but you can also expect live music, u-pick pumpkins, a pie contest, a fantastically weird veggie display and 24-hectares of field, farm and garden to wander through. This event goes on rain or shine. Wear footwear appropriate for walking in dirt and tall grass. Leave feeling like you’ve escaped for a day in the country! Sat, Sept. 16 | 9am-1pm | UBC Farm (3461 Ross Dr.) | Free | DETAILS

SCORE | Love cooking? Interested in building up your bank of kitchen tools or looking to score a hard to find piece of professional grade equipment? Hit the parking lot behind the Lazy Gourmet (5th and Fir) this Sunday and check out the Culinary Garage Sale. Expect cookbooks, cool kitchen gadgets, gently used cooking and baking equipment, table wear, and other treats and know that funds raised will go toward educational scholarships and outreach programs via Les Dames d’Escoffier. Sun, Sept. 17 | 11am-3pm | 1605 W 5th Ave (rear parking lot) | DETAILS

EAT | Five of Vancouver’s rising culinary talents are set to flex their foodie muscles for the Stacks on Stacks block party this Sunday. Forgo the brunch crowds and chow down on Dipped Dough vegan donuts, dumplings from the Dumpling King, Perfect Pull gourmet grilled cheese, and other tasty inventions by Salt N Sear and the stroopwafel-slinging mobile airstream cafe, Johnny Can’t Surf. It’s the perfect opportunity to kick off autumn ahead of the culinary curve while also supporting a cool, community-centred program that’s fostering growth, collaboration and creativity within Vancouver’s food scene by providing accessible, professional shared kitchen spaces to up-and-coming food entrepreneurs. Sun, Sept. 17 | 12-3pm | Commissary Connect kitchen (401 Industrial Ave.) | $40 | DETAILS

POP-UP | Hold on tight to the last rays of summer with the Endless Summer Pop-up at Little Mountain Shop this weekend. From homeware and stationery supplies to textiles and candles, the mix of locally made and imported items will be on the shelves and tables of the Mount Pleasant shop until Sunday. Sept. 15 – 17 | Little Mountain Shop (4386 Main St.) | DETAILS

LEARN | Head out to UBC for a Faculty of Land and Food Systems lecture on the The Scientific Connection Between Plants, People, and the Environment with plant enthusiast Brian Minter. Minter will touch on how plants affect us and the world around us. As the organizers explain: “From health and wellness to pollinator food sources, sequestering carbon and cooling urban heat islands, the role of plants has been repositioned to a new and far more important level.” Important and fascinating stuff! Sat, Sept. 16 | 1:30-3pm | Allard Hall, 1822 East Mall, UBC | DETAILS

GROW | Penjing is an art similar to that of Bonsai. It fashions small plants to resemble miniature landscapes. Skip down to the beautiful sanctuary that is the Dr. Sun Yat Sen Classical Chinese Gardens on Saturday and learn about this ancient discipline. Take a quick (30 min) tour, get caught up on history, preservation, aesthetics and style of the art, then stick around for a hands-on workshop and an opportunity to ask for guidance from master gardener Pin Lee. As the Gardens explain: “With the increasing pace of our modern world, penjing allows us to pursue inner peace and tranquility, fulfilling our desire to be part of nature.” Sounds like sage advice. Registration is required and space is limited, so get sorted in advance. Sat, Sept. 16 | 2-4pm | $20 | Vancouver Chinese Gardens | DETAILS

NATURE | Starting this week (ongoing to February 18th) you can head out to the Beaty Biodiversity Museum to familiarize yourself with the intricacies of terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems by participating in the making of a giant mural. Together with the museum and the good peeps of Hemlock Printers, artist Angela Gooliaff has developed a large scale and interactive colouring book format to help demonstrate how diverse our ecosystems are and to engage the public in thinking about what it would look like if we started to lose pieces of the system. The official opening goes down September 21, but the fun starts this week so get in and check it out. It sounds perfect for big and small people, plus the museum is a stunner of a place to hang out! Sep 16–Feb 18, 2018 | Beaty Biodiversity Museum (2212 Main Mall) | DETAILS

There is 1 comment

Transition Into 2024 with Some Quality Downtime

From our calendar to yours comes this carefully considered agenda of cool things we are doing, wishing we could do, or conspiring to do in Vancouver, from now until January 8th, 2024.

Scout List, Vol. 601

From our calendar to yours comes this carefully considered agenda of cool things we are doing, wishing we could do, or conspiring to do in Vancouver, right now.

Scout List, Vol. 600

From our calendar to yours comes this carefully considered agenda of cool things we are doing, wishing we could do, or conspiring to do in Vancouver, from March 30th to April 5th, 2023.

Scout List, Vol. 599

From our calendar to yours comes this carefully considered agenda of cool things we are doing, wishing we could do, or conspiring to do in Vancouver over the days and weeks ahead.