� Jun. 18, 2008 - Bird Sanctuary

This is a slideshow(and it's my very first attempt at one!) of our nature walk at Serpentine Wildlife Area.  The walk was 4km long and we were all worn out by the time we got back to our van.  I can't believe that even my little 4yr old made it the whole way! As you can see there were plenty of clouds around, and a cool breeze, but when the sun came out it got quite warm rather quickly. The area is protected for wildlife.  That wildlife is mainly birds.  Over 175 different types of birds use the sanctuary during the year at some point during their migration.  We were there at the wrong time of year to see any great variety, but we did manage to see a hawk, a heron, a red winged blackbird and some ducks.  As you can see there are no pictures of any birds as they were too far away to get a good shot. There were plenty of observation towers and the kids had to check out each one.  Now my Hubby is thinking we should build something like that in our yard!! The river is the Serpentine River and it was very low, but there was evidence that it had recently been quite high.  It was interesting to see the current in it change as the tide came in.  We were only a short distance from the ocean, although you can't see it in the pictures either, and you could actually see the water coming in a going up-river. Thanks for visiting!

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� May. 17, 2008 - A Park Day

We're finally having some warmer weather and were able to get out to a park yesterday.  I didn't make the kids do any official nature study, but there was plenty of observations to be made. Inspecting a small, stagnant pond... On the trail... Western Bleeding Hearts(Dicentra formosa) lined our path... I'm not sure what these little white flowers are.  There were so many in our nature book, that it made them hard to figure out exactly which ones they were.  They might be Goldthreads(Coptis) or Wood Anemones(Anemone quinquefolia). The larger heart shaped leaves are a different plant.  The nature guide said they are Dutchman's Pipe(Aristolochia durior), but it was hard to tell because there were no flowers.  It could also be Western Wild Ginger. A tempting creek... Unfortunately, not only was everything fairly muddy(too muddy to play in) from all of our recent rain, but there were signs up asking people to stay out of the creek.  It also said not to throw rocks in it.  Why?  Well, apparently this particular creek was home to a rare little fish called the Salish Sucker and it is only one of five creeks in BC where this fish lives and so it therefore protected. We had a nice day, a little picnic topped off with ice-cream bars from DQ. I hope to do more of these even through the Summer, if my pregnant self will grant me the energy! Thanks for stopping by!

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� Feb. 21, 2008 - A February Nature Walk

We have had a couple of sunny days which have made us feel like 'breaking out'!  On Monday we headed out for a long awaited nature walk.  When we arrived at our destination, we found the park covered in thick fog. But that didn't stop us, in fact it added to the exploring.  I was glad we all had warm coats(it was so sunny as we left home the kids questioned whether they should bring coats, it's funny how they think Summer has arrived just because we get some sunshine!) as the fog made the air very cold and damp. We started on the trail, keeping our bodies moving. Slowly the warm sun began to burn away the fog, and soon we were bathed in glorious sunshine. We did do some nature sketches, however my boys were much more inclined to poke things with sticks and throw rocks in the water. It was a nice day out.  An elderly man walking his dogs, stopped and asked my dd about her sketchbook that she was working on.  He complemented her on her drawings.  And a young man let the kids throw the ball for his dog to fetch. Thanks for stopping by!

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