Thank you, gents.
This Toronto boy got to see so many things for the first time on his first ever drive across Canada: a moose outside of Thunder Bay, and an endless Saskatchewan sunset nearing Regina, and a bear and hours and hours of the Rockies and fast cold mountain rivers from Banff onwards, and then the gleaming towers of Vancouver. I'm only saddened that I never visited with friends Jim in Philly and Jeff in Memphis (and Bob in Atlanta and Shel in Chicago) before I left: they all seem so 'east coast' and far away now!
The weather for this past week, though likely not typical, has been perfect for me: 7 straight days of 16 C degree (about 65 F I think) temps and cloudy skies with light rain/mist -- if it wasn't for the unpacking and dozens of details (eg new driver's licence and phones etc) it would be the ideal climate for coffee and reading and writing....and golf!
Pete - thank you for the tip: I'd read about the UBC course before coming here and look forward to visiting
Bob - thank you for your kind welcome & offer. FYI: for many reasons, we decided to 'land' (at least for the first few months) in Squamish - as you know about 45 minutes north of Vancouver. But it's such a pleasant drive that, once I get organized, I very much look forward to meeting up wherever is most convenient for you.
Until then, all the best
Peter