It is time to say goodbye to winter and what better way to do it than participate in Winter Walk-Off, hosted by Les at Tidewater Gardener. Les invites bloggers to take a walk and share photos of what you see. Last year, my entry was filled with flowering plants from our new neighborhood. This year, winter is keeping a grip on us until the bitter end. Signs of spring are finally beginning to appear. The forsythia is blooming, as seen here shining above a neighbor's fence.
Some camellias are blooming as well...And the heathers (or are they heaths?) are also beautiful now. Just down the street from us is Jason Lee Middle School. There is an elementary school and a high school farther down the road as well.
Surrounding the school is a nice walking trail that winds around the back and circles around the soccer field and track. The entrance to the trail is filled with enormous Douglas Fir trees. The heavy snow and ice storm that we had back in January did some damage.
It looks like crews have been busy cleaning up the mess...
Along the trail, you can see into the back yards and gardens of people who live around the perimeter. There are some really nice gardens here but I did not see many blooms. I did see a chicken though...And there are signs of spring popping up -
For my next trek, I drove a few miles and took a walk in Vancouver Lake Park. Vancouver Lake is just a few blocks from us. We catch glimpses of it when driving along Lakeshore Drive. There are some nice homes that face the lake. To get to Vancouver Lake Park, you must drive through an industrial area. Michael, snack and potato chip lover that he is, would be happy here...As I approached the park area, I noticed that water was standing along the roadways everywhere. We have had a very wet winter, even by Pacific Northwest standards. I think records have been broken this past month for rainfall and I heard a weatherman say that we had already surpassed our average rainfall for the entire year!
I am assuming that the water here is overflow from Vancouver Lake. Since I have not been to this area before, I am not exactly sure.Vancouver Lake Regional Park seems quite large with lots of grassy lawns, picnic tables and wildlife. Birds and geese were everywhere.
There were not that many people about (it is another damp and dreary day) but I did see some guys with a kayak (can you see it in the distance in the photo below?). I want to visit again when the trees and shrubs have leafed out.
This bridge in the distance was completely surrounded by water.
I hope you enjoyed my walk and seeing a part of Vancouver that was new to me as well. Text and photos by Phillip Oliver, Dirt Therapy
