Jenn is an accomplished photographer and graduate of the Western Academy of Photography (Victoria, BC). She views life as a series of memorable moments and creatively and professionally captures those moments for her valued clients. Jenn’s philosophy is to beautifully compose her images and provide her clients with both the expected and unexpected. In turn, she thrills and inspires her clients and other photographers by showcasing people, places and relationships in a stunning way and precisely for who they are.
Jenn finds sanctuary adventuring in the great outdoors. The Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains are her favourite playgrounds and she is also inspired by locations further afield. With her passport stamped on every page, she loves to travel and appreciates culture and diversity. Her life, relationships and work are all shaped by making the most out of life.
Jenn divides her time between the West Coast and the Rocky Mountains, and is also available for assignments in other locations.
Darren Howlett is sitting in Locals Restaurant, a place he has a long history with. He’s worked in this dining room off and on since it was called The Old […]
Della and Winter Podmore-Goggins have grown up here and attend Cumberland Community School, where Della is going into Grade 7 and Winter is going into Grade 4. Each of the […]
By Della & Winter Podmore-GogginsPhoto by Jenn Dykstra
Have you ever wondered what your body is physically and mentally capable of handling? I asked myself this question in 2017 when I first heard a friend was attempting to […]
Words by Bent "Aloha" HansenOpening photo by Jenn Dykstra
My name is Farrah. I am eight years old and right now I am living in Granada, Spain. I started the third grade—called tercero—about four and a half months ago […]
The Comox Valley is known for its abundance of fresh seafood and farm produce. At the right time of year, shoppers can fill their totes with salmon, tuna, and prawns […]
The merry month of May is highly anticipated in the Village of Cumberland. Since 1888, Villagers have gathered on Victoria Day (Queen Victoria’s birthday) for a civic celebration unparalleled on […]
Many people might be surprised to learn that one of the most successful astronomy news sites on the Internet is published from right here in the Comox Valley. Depending on […]
Words by Ryan StuartFeatured photo by Sara Kempner
No vegetable family is as diverse and versatile as the brassicas. While you may not know the word, you’re certainly familiar with them. From your everyday broccoli to the peculiar […]
Restful interludes are integral to the rhythm of life. In the natural world, winter is usually considered a season of rest as many plants and animals become dormant […]
The dictionary says rest is “to cease work or movement in order to relax, refresh oneself, or recover strength.” Most people would think of activities like sleeping, taking a warm […]
Except for Indigenous people, Canadians are settlers—immigrants themselves, or the descendants of immigrants. After my parents and I arrived in Canada from England and Ireland when I was four, we […]
In the early morning hours of the winter solstice, December 21, 2021, my life and health changed forever. I was given the gift of life: I received a liver transplant. […]
I first became drawn to mead because of my Scandinavian heritage: mead plays an important role in many of the Norse myths, piquing my interest. Legends even spoke of the […]
When I was a kid growing up in the ’70s and ’80s in Montreal, stores were closed on Sundays. Every single store. Every single Sunday. Sure, at the dépanneurs (corner […]
When I was a kid growing up in the northern boreal forest, my mother took me and my siblings out foraging for edible mushrooms in the spring. I loved these […]
I’ve occasionally yearned to wear a Davy Crockett-inspired coonskin hat. The reason I don’t isn’t that I fear I’d end up looking more like some molly-soaked fool who had just […]
On Friday, May 13, 2022, a group of paddlers from many backgrounds made their way, in two interconnected voyageur canoes, across the east end of Comox Lake. The sky to […]
The gritty exfoliation of sand between toes, the softness of dewy grass underfoot, the wet flecks of mud that spatter my partner’s feet while running the trails in open sandals: […]
The Strathcona Food Hub, put simply, is a group of collaborators working on contemporary food issues in the Strathcona region. The Hub works with communities to establish more well-rounded, accessible, […]
Two “very pregnant” cats. That was the delivery at the door of the Kitty Cat P.A.L. (Prevent-A-Litter) Society at 8 a.m. the day I spoke with the society’s executive director, […]
We meet in the shadows and plan our route for the late afternoon, prowling the alleys, neighbourhood by neighbourhood, looking for hints about what lies behind the hedges, fences, and […]
A lone modular office building with blue vinyl siding rests at the end of a gravel driveway on the edge of Homalco First Nation near Campbell River. From a wide, […]
When Kermit the Frog said, “It’s not easy being green,” he wasn’t talking about investing, but he might as well have been. It’s a complicated topic to cover on just […]
Most people are shocked when they learn our family of five lives in a tiny home. “How many square feet?” they ask for clarification. “Three hundred and eighty,” we repeat, and […]
Oh no! What? Wait for another traffic light? Simultaneous laughter, as our eyes connect, and we realize we have become Islanders. No longer are our lives at the mercy of […]
Hornby Island local Jake Berman first encountered onigiri while visiting his sister in Japan in 2006. This traditional Japanese food consists of a triangle-shaped bundle of rice and seafood, meat, […]
Every poem tells a kind of story, but poems are not short stories. They are a unique medium which is concerned with universal truths revealed by personal experience. When I […]
The late autumn sun lazily streams through dwindling golden leaves. Live music drifts across the smiling, murmuring crowd. Laughing children roam freely, getting their faces painted and collecting treasures. A […]
Does the thought of walking in the forest at night make you feel uneasy? Does it sound strange? And if you were to walk in the forest after dark, what […]
Etched into the fabric of Comox life, the Northeast Woods are considered by many locals, especially newcomers, to be an iconic parcel of serene wilderness. The woods, almost like a […]
For over 5,000 years, the written word has carried knowledge and information to readers, supporting the development of humanity and the history of civilization. The penning of facts and ideas […]
After the year that was 2020, we’re starting to see light at the end of the tunnel—a return to the way life was before COVID-19 struck—but we are left with […]
You pretty much can’t have a conversation anywhere in the world today without one of our global crises popping up and confounding us with its complexity. On the surface, housing […]
Urban agriculture can mean a number of things depending on who you ask and where in the world it’s occurring. To me, it’s simply the practice of growing food in […]
Words by James McKerricherFeatured photo by Jenn Dykstra
What separates SOS Gear from other outdoor stores is not what it carries, but what it doesn’t. Like most gear shops, the store, located in a cul-de-sac across Cliffe Avenue […]
There’s no real place to start this story of sailing. I never would have predicted that I would be writing this version. When I moved to the Comox Valley with […]
Words by Judith WrightFeatured photo by Jenn Dykstra
After so many months of navigating an ever-changing pandemic landscape of worries, warnings, restrictions, and rules, I think it’s safe to say most of us are feeling pretty damn depleted. […]
Often in an instant, an acquired head injury can change everything. How do you make sense of so much loss? Where does purpose come from if you lose your ability […]
“Hi, I’m Sam. I’m trans.” I start quite a number of conversations this way, and although it’s an unfortunate reality to have to disclose something so personal so frequently, it’s […]
My adventures used to involve adrenaline. Like the time I hitchhiked from Kamloops to climb Mt Forbes in Banff National Park, or when I took a job flight nursing in […]
Devin Burton grew up in the Comox Valley but only recently discovered the Bevan trails, a network of paths winding through lush forest next to the Puntledge River and near […]
On January 1, 2019, a large group of adventurous Cumberland residents gathered on the shores of Comox Lake. Celebrating the New Year, we were there to jump into the frigid […]
I’ve been intimately involved in the ground-source heat pump (GSHP) industry for 20 years. I began with mud up to my armpits, testing the thermal conductivity of geological formations all […]
The third in our series imagining how the Comox Valley’s communities could look 20 years from now. How quickly we can adapt. That’s the underlying message inside historian […]
True story: my first-ever sauna experience included pitchers of gin Caesars and a waterslide—a really steep one. Thinking back, I can feel the heat sinking into my bones, the sweat […]
At 18 years old, Matt is fully submerged in wild island living. A ski instructor and fishing guide, Matt also has experience hunting, surfing, and mountain biking. “I just love […]
Words By Nicole BertramArticle Photo By Jenn Dykstra
Please be advised that the following story contains a graphic description of a grizzly bear attack from the summer of 2019. This story is Colin’s, and he has chosen to […]
The second in our series imagining how the Comox Valley’s communities could look 20 years from now. MAY 2, 2040 At exactly 10:24 p.m. on May 1, Mother […]
When my kids were younger, I logged long hours at the Rotary Skypark, going half-dizzy as they performed endless laps on the merry-go-round and other playground apparatus. Cessnas, Pipers, and […]
You have been stuck on the glacier for three days and whatever has been stalking you is closing in. Night is falling, the sky promises another rough night, your phones […]
The first thing you need to know about Glen Alwin Farm is that nobody involved is named Glen. Or Alwin. The people who run the show are Joanna (Jo) Smith […]
Our heritage house was built in 1895 with the proceeds of a hip-length gold chain carried over the Chilkoot Pass. It was raised with a twin next door, and the […]
PETER GEE: CONNECTOR If you recently arrived in the Comox Valley and found a family doctor with little trouble, you can thank Dr. Peter Gee. As Site Director of the […]
Desperately pinching limestone tufas and underclinging stalactites, I tried hard, like full-body core-strength hard, to keep my feet on tiny features while nearly upside down. Overhanging climbs are the only […]
It is amazing to stand on the shores of Comox Lake and consider the vast amount of water it contains. With a surface area of 21 square kilometres and a […]
The world of photography is broad and has no boundaries. Perhaps this is why so many people are drawn to it. But in this ever-changing, doggish industry, how do you make a sustainable career […]
During the late 1800s and early 1900s, thriving mining, logging, and fishing industries in the Comox Valley led to a remarkably imbalanced male-to-female ratio. With it came the development of […]
ERIC RUSH: EXPLORER To put it mildly, Eric Rush is pretty fond of road biking. A member of Courtenay’s Riverway Dental Racing team, he regularly puts in weekly 100-kilometre rides. […]
Words by Jen GroundwaterFeatured photo by April Bencze
Under the steady gaze of the Comox Glacier, looking east to the Strait of Georgia, the airfield at Canadian Forces Base Comox stands prominently in the landscape. Pitched along the […]
Walk into any garage in Canada and you’re likely to find a hockey stick or two, tucked in a corner or shoved upside down in a barrel alongside brooms, rakes, […]
On a late October day, a pale sun shines through sparse golden leaves, making sparkles on the Orford River. I know there are four grizzly bears just across the water […]
Around 11am on a sunny Monday, Dan Espeseth, Sean Manara, and Chris Hancock show up for work. Instead of riding to their usual job at Dodge City Cycles (DCC), they […]
We are made of the place we came from. If you eat locally and don’t drink bottled water, your body becomes a product of the very land around you. For […]
I enjoy a good local holiday, and one of the best things about living on Vancouver Island is the abundance of adventures to be had within a five-hour drive from […]
I came across a photo box recently containing pictures of a summer my family spent in a rented cottage at Penn Lake in Ontario’s Muskoka region. They say a picture […]
On a sunny afternoon six years ago while riding my motorcycle home from Campbell River on the Old Island Highway, I noticed a pick-up truck waiting to turn from a […]
Let’s face it, cycling is less of a chore when you have a growler of local craft beer, fresh herbs, and a few pieces of fresh-picked produce in your basket. […]
Fresh water flows through the Kingfisher Oceanside Resort and Spa’s new Serenity Garden. The soothing sound of water travelling over stone provides the foundation for this striking landscape. From the […]
Words by Ashley Hamilton-MacquarriePhotos by Jenn Dykstra
Though the Comox Valley leaves little to be desired for the Island’s mountain biking community, our excitement often fuels the desire for new terrain. When I lived in North Vancouver […]
High on the verdant slope of Forbidden Plateau rests a craftsman lodge overlooking the Salish Sea. Though the area is at the mercy of deep snow in the winter and […]
In the late seventies, Sandra Dykstra skied into Skoki Lodge, an historical backcountry destination in the Canadian Rockies. An east-coaster for the majority of her life, she was not an […]
Shinrin-yoku, sometimes known as “forest bathing,” is simply the act of being mindful and present in the forest while repeatedly walking and stopping. Using the spiritual geography of the Comox […]
My husband Kyle and I grew up in the Comox Valley, both of us lovingly raised on the family farms started by our grandparents in the 1960s—Knopp’s Dairy Farm and […]
Summer lays down to sleep in the cool woods. The crisp fall air wakens. Trails of dark wet earth wind through the forest. The prints of thirsty animals in the […]
I’m standing at the sink, doing the dishes, washing out the plastic yoghurt pot before tossing it into the recycling. As the dirty hot water washes down the drain I […]
It’s 5:30 a.m., April 15, 1942. The full dark of night is just lifting. Suitcases are packed and weighed and packed again. A last board is hammered into a window […]
Picture a small boy sitting on a tall drafting stool, drawing rocket ships, submarines, and houses – sculptural, impossible, fantastical houses. That was me almost 50 years ago, enjoying the […]
The setting of The Fanny Bay Candle Company is pastoral. Donalda Lauzon and her husband Randy greet me while attempting to wrangle their wildly friendly 7 month-old puppy, Belle. I […]
Keep a childlike curiosity in search of life’s miraculous delight. I celebrated my 85th birthday on December 28, 2022, with a sense of fulfillment and gratitude. What I […]
In the 1980s, I was living in a subdivision in the suburbs just north of Toronto. On any given Saturday afternoon if you were to drive through my neighbourhood you […]
So often we think of hypnosis as a magic trick or simply good for a laugh. My first experience with hypnosis was during my G.P. Vanier graduation talent show in […]
The coffeehouse dates back to the Middle East, with origination suggested as early as the late 1400s, where they were primarily used as a place for political gatherings. An introduction […]
Mind. Body. Heart. Spirit. The experience of communal singing nourishes them all. The Comox Valley is rich in choral activity. There’s a choir here for anyone to lift their voice […]
Words by Wendy Nixon StothertPhotos by Jenn Dykstra
In these days of shifting consciousness around food production and consumption, it’s encouraging to meet a young person with a fresh and inspired approach to farming. The rigours of such […]
Cyclocross, as a type of racing, tends to be limited to a clearly defined race season here on Vancouver Island. From September to December, cyclocross is full on: a flurry […]
In the past I have waxed poetic about the beauty of wood; how it can be shaped, molded, and finished. But wood is fallible; it can check and warp, split […]
Fishing may be one of the planets oldest professions, but Estevan Tuna is all about innovation. Bruce and Dianne Devereux have built a faithful clientele of Albacore tuna enthusiasts since […]
They say necessity is the mother of all inventions, and that’s ever apparent when hearing the story of how the now Comox Valley-based company, AquaQuest, came to be. Curt Coomber, […]
They have distinct products and personal journeys, but their motivation is shared: your skin is your body’s largest and fastest-growing organ, and it deserves the best possible care. Local soap […]
Imagine living a childhood without water flowing from the tap or food in the fridge. Imagine having to huddle around a space heater for warmth or plug holes in the […]
Many of us fear to take risks. Fear to surrender. Fear the outcome. Although this life is altogether calm and tumultuous, somehow we make our way through it. More often […]
Since it was first discovered, fire has been heating our caves, huts and homes. But wood-burning heat has not been without controversy in our modern world. Looking back on my […]
In my happy place, I’m away from the world and all its noise. I’m free from unnecessary thought and distraction. In this place, there’s no mom, no writer. There’s just […]
In a list of quintessential Comox Valley events, it can be argued that the World Community Film Festival sits nears the top. It reflects a deep current of social and […]
Adventure is dirty business. With piles of gear comes the need for novel ways to store, stow and transport gear that may be clean, but will soon become filthy; dry […]
Three years ago I first laid eyes on a Kindred snowboard in a local sporting goods consignment store. The top sheet depicted a saw tooth mountain using wood veneer and […]
Though Comox Lake is a short drive from Cumberland’s west end, past the Chinese town site and a quaint collection of waterside cabins, it’s arguably best witnessed when stumbled upon […]
Our associations with the notion of inspiration are more fiction than fact, made evident by the familiar image of depressed and disheveled artist waiting for the lightning to strike. This […]
We all have a virtual playlist running through our minds that gets us from one day to the next. Music can inspire and motivate, it can lift us up, or […]
It doesn’t matter whether you have tried yoga, or not. Whether you’re good at it, or not. Yoga isn’t really about all the poses we see in magazines or film. […]
The first bike I ever owned was a black triumph BMX with yellow gum-wall tires and matching grips. I have always wished I had kept that bike. Not to ride […]
For the past 90 years Royston’s rusty monuments to Vancouver Island’s nautical history rests on the Comox Harbour seabed. Welcome to the Royston Ship Wrecks. On most days, taking a […]
North Americans love their cars. No matter how hard we try to avoid it and might hate to admit it, the automobile is an essential and integral part of our […]
Old school, new school, ski school no school. Freestyle, freeride, slopestyle, no style. Front side, back side, new lines. Singles lines, family days, winter break, Friday nights. Hiking boot pack, […]
Words by Eugene ChungOpening photo by Jenn Dykstra
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