Latest news with #GrouseMountain
CTV News
7 days ago
- Sport
- CTV News
Three-year-old astonishes parents by completing the Grouse Grind with them
Vinu Wesley and Subhashree Kannan pose with their son Valluvan atop the Grouse Grind on July 20, 2025. Outdoor enthusiasts Vinu Wesley and Subhashree Kannan were excited to introduce their three-year-old son Valluvan to the Grouse Grind, a gruelling 2.9-kilometre uphill hike in North Vancouver comprised of 2,830 steps. Valluvan is an energetic and determined little boy who loves the outdoors, so they thought he would enjoy the challenge. But they didn't expect the pint-sized climber would make it very far when they started the trek on Sunday. 'We just thought, just head up and do 25 per cent of the Grind – one quarter – and then bring him back,' said Wesley. But when they got to the quarter marker, Valluvan wanted to keep going. His mom was skeptical, but the family continued to climb. 'We thought let's go to the half mark and check, and probably we come back. By the time he was half mark, he didn't even want to sit. I was so astonished seeing that,' Kannan said. Wesley sat his son down at the halfway marker, explained how hard it would be to continue all the way to the top of Grouse Mountain, and offered him a choice: Go back down, or keep climbing. Valluvan didn't hesitate. He was all in. Soon other climbers started to take notice. 'A lot of people were very impressed, they were all stopping by giving him high fives,' said Wesley. 'He saw people coming and everyone was motivating him – 'Good job, go ahead.' He's like, 'Oh yeah, let's go, let's go,'' said Kannan. They took the second half of the climb very slowly, and the family finished the Grind in just over two hours. 'He pushed himself, and we just actually tagged along with him,' said Valluvan's mom. 'It was an amazing experience, I couldn't describe it. We were so proud as parents,' said his dad. He looked online to see if Grouse kept records of the youngest climbers, but he couldn't find any information. 'Possibly he's the youngest to do it, I don't know,' Wesley said. Valluvan's parents know most three-year-olds aren't cut out for the Grouse Grind, and they were prepared to end the climb at any point. 'One thing I would say is trust your kid,' said Kannan. 'Trust your kid, and try to explore options what you have not done.' 'We think kids can't do much, but that's not true. They are very resilient, they are very focused, and they can push their limits,' said Wesley. Valluvan turns four next month, and is eager to keep climbing. 'I think our aim is to do Garibaldi at some point, but again we want to take him at his own pace, see how he does,' said Wesley. Valluvan's mom believes if you don't have preconceived notions of what a child can do, 'You never know, something amazing can turn out like this.'
CTV News
18-07-2025
- Entertainment
- CTV News
Grouse Mountain grizzlies to celebrate birthday with fundraising party
This photo shows Grinder and Coola, two grizzly bears, celebrating their 21st birthday in North Vancouver, B.C. (Image credit: Facebook/grousemountain) Grouse Mountain's two resident grizzly bears are turning 24 this month and the North Vancouver resort is celebrating with an event designed to raise funds and awareness for the B.C. bruin. The day-long shindig will see orphaned grizzlies Grinder and Coola celebrated via a plethora of family-friendly events, including the resort's annual cake smash and a live performance from the Squamish Nation (Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw) children's group the Proud Little Warriors. The group's Grizzly Bear Song, a traditional Squamish song inspired by the nation's connection to nature and to the bears themselves, provides an opportunity for education for visitors, alongside other programs that delve into grizzly and bear conservation facts. Also in the line-up are enhanced Ranger Talks, a craft station, a scavenger hunt and face painting. The event, dubbed the 'Bear-thday Fun-draiser,' will help raise funds for the Grizzly Bear Foundation's Project Rewild, an initiative helping to rewild orphaned grizzly cubs in B.C. Grinder and Cooler first arrived at Grouse Mountain in 2001 after being rescued at six months old. Grinder was rescued from the Interior of B.C. after being found alone on a logging road near Invermere, while Coola was found a few weeks later, near Bella Coola beside his mother, who had been killed in a car collision.
CBC
19-06-2025
- Entertainment
- CBC
These First Nations kids played a song to attract grizzly bears — and it worked
Social Sharing A group of First Nations children played a traditional song with drums on Sunday at Metro Vancouver's Grouse Mountain, and ended up catching the attention of curious grizzly bears in the process. Six children from the Squamish Nation (Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw) were on a trip to the popular Grouse Mountain resort, which includes a grizzly bear wilderness sanctuary where tourists can get a glimpse of the reclusive creatures. While there, the children played a tune called the Grizzly Bear Song, which comes from one of the nation's hereditary chiefs, Ian Campbell. And in a moment that was caught on video, bears came out of the bush and up to the sanctuary fence to curiously examine the six drummers, whose traditional song describes their connection to nature and to the bears themselves. WATCH | Squamish Nation kids' drumming attracts grizzlies: Young musicians go viral after coaxing grizzlies with their Grizzly Bear Song 2 days ago Duration 1:43 A group of young First Nations drummers from the Squamish Nation is in the spotlight after a video of them singing to a pair of grizzly bears, in the bears' habitat on Grouse Mountain in North Vancouver, went viral. The video has since gone viral, and both the children and the group's co-ordinator say they're proud that the nation's heritage is now being shown off to a global audience. "It felt, like, really amazing ... I felt so blessed when they came really close to us," said Jonah Nahanee, one of the kids. "It's fun to sing with my culture," he added. The kids in the group range from 10 to 11 years old, and all of them expressed joy at the fact the bears seemed to want to listen to their songs. In the video, a bear comes close to the fence where the boys are singing and looks at them all in turn as they continue to drum. One of the boys, Thomas Jacobs, says it's the closest he's ever been to a grizzly. "I think we've been doing this for three or two years, and I just love singing for my culture," he told CBC News. 'I shed a tear' Jennifer Nahanee, Jonah's mother and the group's co-ordinator, says the drummers are called the Proud Little Warriors, and they have regular practices at least once a month. She said the kids — who've been learning the Squamish language and music for years — know more about the songs' meaning than she does. "I don't always know what the words mean, but I can definitely feel it in my Sḵwálwen — in my heart," she said. "And, you know, I shed a tear when they were singing up at Grouse Mountain, just because you know how proud I am to see how far they've come." Nahanee said that her video has racked up more than a million views, and she's gotten messages of support from people who speak Spanish and other languages. "I'm happy, you know, to get our language and our culture out there, let people know that we're still here, you know?" Nahanee said.
CBC
18-06-2025
- Entertainment
- CBC
These Indigenous kids played a song to attract grizzly bears — and it worked
A group of Indigenous children played a traditional song with drums on Sunday at Metro Vancouver's Grouse Mountain, and ended up catching the attention of curious grizzly bears in the process. Six children from the Squamish First Nation were on a trip to the popular Grouse Mountain resort, which includes a grizzly bear wilderness sanctuary where tourists can get a glimpse of the reclusive creatures. While there, the children played a tune called the Grizzly Bear Song, which comes from one of the nation's hereditary chiefs, Ian Campbell. And in a moment that was caught on video, bears came out of the bush and up to the sanctuary fence to curiously examine the six drummers, whose traditional song describes their connection to nature and to the bears themselves. WATCH | Indigenous kids' drumming attracts grizzlies: Young musicians go viral after coaxing grizzlies with their Grizzly Bear Song 8 hours ago Duration 1:43 The video has since gone viral, and both the children and the group's co-ordinator say they're proud that the nation's heritage is now being shown off to a global audience. "It felt, like, really amazing ... I felt so blessed when they came really close to us," said Jonah Nahanee, one of the kids. "It's fun to sing with my culture," he added. The kids in the group range from 10 to 11 years old, and all of them expressed joy at the fact the bears seemed to want to listen to their songs. In the video, a bear comes close to the fence where the boys are singing and looks at them all in turn as they continue to drum. One of the boys, Thomas Jacobs, says it's the closest he's ever been to a grizzly. "I think we've been doing this for three or two years, and I just love singing for my culture," he told CBC News. 'I shed a tear' Jennifer Nahanee, Jonah's mother and the group's co-ordinator, says the drummers are called the Proud Little Warriors, and they have regular practices at least once a month. She said the kids — who've been learning the Squamish language and music for years — know more about the songs' meaning than she does. "I don't always know what the words mean, but I can definitely feel it in my Sḵwálwen — in my heart," she said. "And, you know, I shed a tear when they were singing up at Grouse Mountain, just because you know how proud I am to see how far they've come." Nahanee said that her video has racked up more than a million views, and she's gotten messages of support from people who speak Spanish and other languages. "I'm happy, you know, to get our language and our culture out there, let people know that we're still here, you know?" Nahanee said.
