I had never ridden in a helicopter before but it was definitely something I had always wanted to do. I thought what better way to see my hometown and photograph the city, than to take a chopper ride over Vancouver. Helijet, a Vancouver based helicopter company operates sightseeing tours over the city. Besides tours and charters, they also operate scheduled flights to and from Vancouver to Whistler, Victoria, Prince Rupert, and Haida Gwaii.
I booked their Greater Vancouver Scenic Tour and chose the first flight of the day. The tour lasted 30 minutes long and it took off from Helijet's pad near Vancouver's downtown waterfront. We flew over False Creek, Stanley Park, English Bay, and the North Shore Mountains. We saw waterfalls and lakes from the sky, we flew west towards the Sea To Sky Highway, had views of the Gulf Islands and the Pacific Ocean. During the flight, our fantastic pilot was giving myself and my fellow passengers details of what we were looking at and answered any questions we had. As we headed back towards the helicopter pad, our flight view was of the beaches, the city, and its landmarks.
As someone who grew up in Vancouver and comes back several times a year, it was by far the best possible experience of seeing my hometown in its grand glory. I am an amateur photographer at best but my photos from the tour are probably the best souvenirs I have from my last trip north, maybe ever.
Click here for more photos and a GoPro video from this tour.
