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Rat Portage Mill Site

In 1903 the Rat Portage company bought the rights to the lumber mill at the Harrison Mills BC Townsite after a fire deserted the original buildings and machinery. When the new mill was opened in 1909, it was one of BC's largest sawmills. However, after World War 1 Rat Portage decided to pull out of the town altogether, to concentrate on its mill in Vancouver. The machinery was sold and the buildings left vacant, until a fire in 1930 claimed most of what was left.

Our Video (YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ey8xIFz1LMY

Remains of Worlds Longest Floating Bridge

In 1963, the Washington State Department of Transportation achieved a Guinness World Record when it constructed the worlds longest floating bridge which connected the cities of Bellevue and Seattle. The SR 520 Bridge, completed in August 1963 and measuring 2.39 miles in length, with a floating section stretching for almost 1.5 miles.

The bridge carried four lanes of traffic, separated by a curb that was later replaced with a simple Jersey barrier. At the center was a drawspan that opened for large vessels traversing the lake.

After serving Washington State for over 50 years it had begun to show it's age. The original Evergreen Point Floating Bridge was designed before the implementation of modern earthquake engineering standards, with vulnerabilities in its hollow support structures that could have failed in a major earthquake. Additionally, vibrations caused by storm surges and strong winds were able to compromise the aging drawspan, anchor cables and pontoons, which could lead to structural failure in a major storm. This required the bridge to close to traffic during sustained wind gusts of 50 miles per hour or higher for more than 15 minutes.

Although the original bridge carried two lanes of traffic in each direction, it did not include shoulders or pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure. The lack of a shoulder led to traffic congestion in the event of an accident, which would block one or two lanes in a given direction and block emergency services from accessing the bridge.

The new bridge was dedicated on April 2, 2016, and was certified by Guinness World Records as the new world's longest floating bridge at a length of 7,708.49 feet long, 130 feet longer than the bridge it replaced.

The bridge was deconstructed into sections 110 metres long with 25-centimetre thick walls and pontoons. It was supposed to be floated to an industrial site in Kenmore for disposal and recycling.However, the city rejected the plan, citing the possible release of toxins in the pontoon's concrete. The sections were acquired by True North Operations Group with the goal of re-purposing the pontoons as temporary or permanent docks or off-loading facilities, piers or offshore storage.

Four years later, the majority of the pontoons continue to sit unused in the Pitt River.

Our Video (YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gJNk3IQ10-Q

Barnet Mill Site

The North Pacific Lumber Company Mill known as the Barnet Mill was built in 1889 which spotted the growth of the Village of Barnet. Mills operated at that site until the 1950s and burnt down on two separate occasions. The town faded and in 1972 the land was sold to the municipality of Burnaby which turned the site into a marine park. Today you can still see a few taxes if the past including pillars and concrete foundations from the old mill.

Our Video (YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eMfuY5_RHZI

Abandoned Pet Cemetery

This now abandoned Pet Cemetery was founded by Daniel and Mary Blair. After their dog died, they decided to create this pet cemetery, believed to be the only one in BC, which opened in 1952. Nearly 700 pets have been buried here over the years, including dogs, cats, gerbils, birds, guinea pigs, and many other species. The cemetery is currently unmaintained,  unprotected and partially-overgrown, making many of the graves hard to spot.

Our Video (YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mo9dbijaX8g

IOCO Townsite

This now abandoned Pet Cemetery was founded by Daniel and Mary Blair. After their dog died, they decided to create this pet cemetery, believed to be the only one in BC, which opened in 1952. Nearly 700 pets have been buried here over the years, including dogs, cats, gerbils, birds, guinea pigs, and many other species. The cemetery is currently unmaintained,  unprotected and partially-overgrown, making many of the graves hard to spot.

Our Video (YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vtRABiKYtUg

Langley Speedway

Langley Speedway was a 1/4-mile paved oval track used for stock car racing located in Langley, British Columbia. The track opened in 1965 and closed in 1984. The track hosted numerous classes of racing during its operational existence, including several visits from the NASCAR Winston West series in the 1970s. For the last few years prior to its closing due to its lease not being renewed, the track was known as Action Raceway.

The Langley Speedway Historical Society (LSHS) has lobbied governments in the area to preserve the facility, holding clean-up events at and around the track. In 2006, the GVRD Parks Committee voted unanimously to support heritage listing of the speedway. The GVRD Board also voted unanimously to support the listing. In September 2006, the Council of the Township of Langley voted unanimously to include Langley Speedway on its Heritage Resource Listing. The LSHS is currently working with the GVRD staff and other interested groups in its efforts to preserve the site and promote it for various event uses, including car shows.

Our Video (YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eR57CfoswoM

Ladner Creek Trestle

The Ladner Creek Trestle was abandoned after the Kettle Valley Railway stopped running in the 1960's. Since then, the dilapidated trestle has become a popular hike photo opportunity for those willing to hike the unmaintained and sometimes treacherous trails.

Our Video (YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nb7NF5Mq4rM

Mima Mounds

Mima mounds In Washington State are low, flattened, circular to oval, domelike, natural mounds that are composed of loose, unstratified, often gravelly sediment. Theories for the origin of Mima mounds geology include burrowing by pocket gophers; accumulation of wind-blown sediment around vegetation; seismic ground shaking by major earthquakes and shrinking and swelling of clays.

Our Video (YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dq1R-Zonsr8

Website: http://www.dnr.wa.gov/MimaMounds

Location: 12315 Waddell Creek Rd SW, Olympia, WA 98512, United States

Gravity Hill Maple Ridge

A gravity hill, is a place where the layout of the surrounding land produces an optical illusion, making a slight downhill slope appear to be an uphill slope although sites are often accompanied by claims that magnetic or supernatural forces are at work.

Our Video (YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dxanUMjY1mQ

Location: McKee Rd, Abbotsford, BC V3G 2L6

wEIRDOS Market

Weirdos Market Vancouver returns for it's 3rd year!! Hold on tight – because things are about to get WEIRD! Vancouver’s one-stop-shop for all things unusual, unique, and out of this world is bigger and crazier than ever before! Weirdos unites BC's most awesome and unconventional local artists who create gifts from the kooky to the macabre for those rad folks looking to fulfill the quirkiest of needs on their holiday shopping lists!

Our Video (YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cL2pkDXetXA

Ripley's Believe it or Not Times Square

RIPLEY'S MUSEUM TIMES SQUARE is a one-of-a-kind attraction welcomes visitors to immerse themselves in the unusual, the unexpected and the unbelievable. Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Times Square showcases some of the most incredible exhibits found in New York City, many of them discovered and owned by Robert Ripley himself!

Our Video (YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TxtScTtzLvs

Website: https://ripleysnewyork.com/

Location: 234 W 42nd St, New York, NY 10036, United States

Ripley's Believe it or Not Newport Oregon

Ripley's Believe it or Not Oregon showcases exhibits from the worlds of science and illusions, hands-on interactive displays, videos, wax figures, rare artifacts, and special effects set in themed surroundings. The exhibits gathered by Ripley's seem too weird to be true, so believe it or not! This version of the Newport Ripley's no longer exists - It was been closed for a complete renovation and reopened in 2020.

Our Video (YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VsN3rpup8jQ

Paxton Gate

Ripley's Believe it or Not Oregon showcases exhibits from the worlds of science and illusions, hands-on interactive displays, videos, wax figures, rare artifacts, and special effects set in themed surroundings. The exhibits gathered by Ripley's seem too weird to be true, so believe it or not! This version of the Newport Ripley's no longer exists - It was been closed for a complete renovation and reopened in 2020.

Our Video (YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z51jFbfBYE8

Website: http://www.paxtongate.com/

Location: 4204 N Mississippi Ave, Portland, OR 97217, United States

Ye Olde Curiosity Shop

Seattle Oddities Shop, the Ye Olde Curiosity Shop on Pier 54, showcases a huge collection of the weird and wonderful including human mummies, animal oddities (2-Headed Duckling Riding a Skateboard??), shrunken heads and more!

Our Video (YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-0Xaa7CL10c

Website: http://yeoldecuriosityshop.com/

Location: Pier 54, 1001 Alaskan Way, Seattle, WA 98104, United States

Freemont Troll

Indie shops and hip bars pack the Fremont Seattle neighborhood on the north bank of the canal. Quirky outdoor sculptures include the gigantic Freemont Troll, lurking under the Aurora Bridge, and the towering Fremont Rocket. The Troll was featured in the Heath Ledger film 10 Things I Hate About You.

Our Video (YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NucrOlPxnck

Website: http://www.seattle.gov/neighborhoods/programs-and-services/p-patch-community-gardening/p-patch-list/trolls-knoll

Location: N 36th St, Seattle, WA 98103, United States

Yard Birds

The Yard Birds Roadside Attraction was originally a surplus store started in 1947 in Centralia, Washington. Yard Birds stores had a logo that featured a black bird with a yellow beak, reminiscent of the cartoon characters Heckle and Jeckle.

Our Video (YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uNqPv9WHFKw

Location: 2100 N National Ave, Chehalis, WA 98532, United States

World Famous Giant Shoe Museum

The World Famous Shoe Museum displays part of the collection of Danny Eskenazi, who became obsessed with giant shoes after he'd learned that his grandfather had once owned a wingtip worn by Robert Wadlow, the world's tallest man.

Our Video (YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JmIyd3clZMg

Website: https://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/15540

Location: 1501 Pike Pl # 424, Seattle, WA 98101, United States

Pike Place Market Gum Wall

The Market Theater Gum Wall is a brick wall covered in used chewing gum located in an alleyway in Post Alley under Pike Place Market in Downtown Seattle. Much like Bubblegum Alley in San Luis Obispo, California, the Market Theater Gum Wall is a local landmark. Parts of the wall are covered several inches thick, 15 feet high along a 50-foot-long section.

The wall is by the box office for the Market Theater. The tradition began around 1993 when patrons of Unexpected Productions' Seattle Theatresports stuck gum to the wall and placed coins in the gum blobs. Theater workers scraped the gum away twice, but eventually gave up after market officials deemed the gum wall a tourist attraction around 1999.

Our Video (YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NtacHSQr3Ls

Website: https://unexpectedproductions.org/gumwall/

Location: 1428 Post Alley, Seattle, WA 98101, United States

World's Worst Bus Stop

To highlight the sad and dangerous state of our bus stops, StreetsBlog held a 16-entry tournament to crown North Americas Worst Bus Stop in 2018. The horrendous bus stop on the Lougheed Highway in Pitt Meadows, just outside of Vancouver won, trouncing Cincinnati landslide.

Our Video (YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7F4JzDyZjCk

Location: Pitt Meadows, BC V3Y 1Z1

World's Tallest Flagpole

Visiting the current home of the giant flag and flagpole, which held the record of World's Tallest Flagpole when it was erected for Vancouver's 1986 World Expo.

Our Video (YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lf40kA8r0wQ

Location: Under the Flag, 15250 104 Ave, Surrey, BC V3R 6N8