About six months ago, I wrote about seeing the Google Street View camera car drive past. When Google’s street-level photo feature was implemented in Vancouver, I figured I might show up. Unfortunately, the patio tables out front at Subeez are empty (it’s clearly much earlier in the day), so I didn’t make the cut.
Of course, I immediately became interested in other familiar Vancouver spots:
- Here’s the viewpoint halfway up Cypress Mountain, where we tried to compromise our girlfriends good upbringing back in high school.
- The construction site where my childhood home used to stand.
- The parking lot at the Reifel Bird Sanctuary, one of my favourite, lesser-known spots in the city.
- Here’s the strange, charming little plane-spotting park near the Vancouver Airport.
- This seems to be the most remote point on the north-west part of the Street View coverage. It’s a banal stretch of road north of Whistler.
Though it seems a little gimmicky, Street View is actually a very useful tool. I often remember where a business or office is, but can’t remember the name. Or, alternatively, I think I might remember the name of the restaurant, but I want to see its exterior to confirm that’s it the right one. So, despite not featuring me anywhere in the Lower Mainland, it’s super handy.
What’s your favourite Vancouver spot on Street View?
DarrenBarefoot.com 
I just created short URLs for the street views of my parents’ and my house, so when we give people directions, there’s an easy link to show them what the place looks like in addition to where it is.
Oh, and that Cypress Lookout is lame. You want the other one.
Getting onto the Barnston Island Ferry
Obsolete at launch: Getting onto the (now defunct) Albion Ferry
On the way to Reifel: bridge across to Westham Island
While I was pleased that Tsawwassen was included in the Street View mapping, curiously they have ended everything just above 1 Avenue. They don’t do 1 Avenue nor anything south of it (which exists, though there are many points at which they border on Point Roberts and the US).
I’m assuming this is some kind of border related issue as if you look across the southern part of the map, it seems to end within 50-100m of the border. Kind of annoying that houses and streets that are allowed to exist there aren’t allowed to appear on Google Street View most likely because of some security concern.
Not just Vancouver, but this is great:
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/technology/readers-tour-through-canada-on-street-view/article1316852/
After you wrote the original post, I remembered seeing the Google car myself some months ago. I checked it last week and there I am, walking down the street (although it only shows me from the back and in the next camera view along the street I am nowhere to be seen). I assume they did not want to show my face.