Through the early to late 70s, a friend and me would regularly take the bus to Burkeville, walk along the old road now replaced by Russ Baker Way, cut across a field and hop a 4 foot(!) fence and creep out right to the edge of the runway to take photographs of aircraft landing on 26L. (Until the grounds crew would show up to chase us off, but we could see them coming)
By chance in 1971 we were in place for the first landing of a 747 into YVR!
To this day I can still feel the thrill of having such an enormous airliner pass so close over us laying there. Previously biggest airframe I shot was a DC8. Couldn't wind the film fast enough and the down-blast almost blew my Minolta right out of my hands! Good to know that magnificent beast will still be flying, likely longer than me.
I'll be long since grounded for various mental infirmities by the time that airframe is no longer viable. They said the B52 couldn't possibly continue beyond 50 years didn't they?