Great Blue Heron Nature Reserve

A few days ago we had to go to the Chilliwack area to pick up something, so as I often do in a situation like that,  I try to combine it with something else.  So time to visit a new place and give the dogs a walk in a new spot.  

I had seen this Heron Reserve mentioned once or twice on a blog I follow, and was interested in going there myself.  The map below is not exactly to scale, but gives you a good idea.  Dogs are only allowed on one trail within the reserve and that is the green one up through the middle.  We didn't see any herons while we were there, but I imagine in nesting season it would be quite busy. 

We parked on the purple dyke area just above the P (you are here) spot on the map.  Then we walked to the left along the dyke.  It was a very gray day, which didn't make for great pictures, but there were lots of people out.

When the purple dyke connected with the black trail along the river, we turned left and then completed the loop by walking up the green trail back to the car.  3.75 km.  Not bad for a 16+ year old dog.  Jake enjoyed meeting a few dogs, and then told a young, large Great Pyrenees pup to get lost when he tried to put his feet on Jake's back.  Luna is dog reactive so I just take her off to the side and reward her for looking at the dog but not reacting.

This slough was full of Canada geese and ducks, with more flocks circling and calling overhead.

Some nests in the trees in one area.

Sooo many waterfowl

Off the dyke now and into the river trail.  Horses use these trails too, so slippery spots like the wood on the bridge had great footing.

On that bridge looking out down the creek to the Vedder River.

Loads of wild clematis climbing up the trees and over shrubbery.

Salmon fisherman on the river

It doesn't even look like Jake is looking at him here, but he was quite interested in what that dark blob was out there in the water.  His eyesight is not great, so I'm not sure what he could actually see.

This nest seemed bigger and I was thinking eagle nest.  And that was an eagle at the top of the tree to the left of the nest.

A viewing tower.  Larry chose not to go up.  I said I was going to try run up.  48 steps later, I don't think I was running much.

Luna heading to the steps to try come up.

The view from the top was pretty good.

And over to the last bridge to the parking.  The interpretive center is closed because of Covid.  Too bad, it looked interesting.  I had walked over to have a look.

Hopefully next year we can go back during nesting season and the building will be open.  I'd like to take our bikes one day too and ride the dyke and river trail.

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I'm a Blogging Failure

Soooo....I was actually going to do another post, but then saw that I had started one three months ago, so I'll try to finish it it off....

July 16/20

Well so much for me trying to keep up blogging this year.  I guess I got off to a slightly decent start, and then fell off the cliff, never to be seen again.  Almost, until now, and now I've dragged myself up and will attempt a post.  A post I was actually going to do a week ago, oh well.

So with the Covid Crisis we've not done the usual amount of Oliver trips.  It would have been safe for us to do so, but we were told to stay close to home, and we did.   Larry did make a one night trip in late April or early May, to check up on things, and then we all went in June.  By all I mean the two of us and the two dogs.  And then we went again at the beginning of July.  The photos are from the last trip.  They are all taken with the phone, and I don't have an expensive phone, so quality is not the best on some.

Usually we stop at least once during the 4 hour trip, for our own comfort and that of the dogs.  This trip we stopped at 'Rhododendron Flats', which is in Manning Park.  There are wild rhododendrons growing there, and if you pick the right time of the year, you can see them in bloom.  Not really spectacular, but interesting, and there is a nice trail around.  The rhodos were mostly done when we stopped, but we did find a few blooms.

Such healthy looking foliage

Monotropa hypopitys (Pinesap) | Native Plants of North America

Mossy rainforest

 

These are Saskatoon berries, picked in the Oliver area.  I picked more in August.  And now they are languishing in the freezer, waiting to be made into jam at some point.

Along the hike and bike path next to the Okanagan River we see a lot of milkweed.  The plants provide food for the larvae of the Monarch Butterfly.  The are interesting plants, and not something we see at home

We have a few plants in the little garden at the house at Oliver, but it's hard to keep it nice because it gets so hot there and we aren't there often enough to keep it watered.  The blue is Sea Holly I believe, and the plant below is a little succulent type that I took up there and does well.

 Saskatoons picked and on the dehydrator tray to be shaken around to get all the little bits of debris to drop through the holes.  It works really well for blueberries too!

Nice and cleaned up now!

We had a visitor! We see signs that there have been deer in the yard over the winter, but this is the first time we had seen one in the summer.  Jumping out of the neighbours backyard here.

And later peering over our back gate from the laneway.  

The view from the backyard has improved.  The new neighbours let all the hedging cedars die off and then installed this lattice addition to the concrete and block wall that surrounds their sunken backyard.  I'm not sure about that fence.....I showed the picture to David and he mentioned a Lacrosse Box, lol!

One morning when we got there I set off on my bike about 7am and went along the river to where these golden currants were growing.  I picked quite a bit, but I didn't get much juice from them, so ended up adding other bits of wild fruits to it and came up with a small batch of jam I called Wild Medley.  

The baby's breath has gone wild there, is considered invasive, but looks like fluffy clumps when it is in bloom.

I think on this trip I picked those Saskatoons shown above, notice my handy saddle bags.  They were actually a pain the butt because my heels hit the front edge of them with every pedal, most annoying! I fiddled around with them a few times and eventually  managed to move the bags back enough to miss my heels.

I had kept my eye on this massive thistle, the photo does not do it justice.

The stems and leaves so silvery, I had seen nothing like it before

When I got around to googling it, I was shocked that it was a Scotch Thistle.  Well who hasn't heard of that, but obviously I had never seen one before. Another invasive plant.

And so there you go, I sort of finished this post.  I had actually come to write another one, but didn't want to waste the first few paragraphs and all the pictures I had loaded for this unfinished one.

Moss and Other Woodsy Tales

Months ago now, I played around with a little camera, taking some moss pictures.  It is a fascinating little world

It was raining that day, or had rained, so of course there are the rain drop pictures

A rustic wreath

Ferns growing 8 feet up the tree.

And then some more recent photos, that are quickly becoming dated.  

My annual 'deer skull killed by a cougar/trillium' photo

Indian Plum or Osoberry.  The fruit look like tiny little plums.  They are edible, but not particularly tasty.  I tried to make jelly one year, but wasn't successful.

Bleeding Hearts.  We are large areas covered in them, so pretty this time of the year.

Skunk Cabbage in our little seasonal creek

I've read that bears love them.

Salmonberry

As well the False Lily of the Valley covers large swaths

Old dogs, old logs

Two old dogs😉

Later we went back out to cut that log up for firewood.  It had fallen down in to the swamp.  I do a lot of things, but chain sawing is not one of them.  I carry and split.  I got my boots stuck in that muck and more than once I had to drop my load to save myself!

We were dodging rain showers that day, and were successful.  But could see a good one to the north as we were heading back to the house.

A tree on the ground always looks more than logs on the trailer, which look more than the split wood stacked.  Every bit helps though!

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These logs are a reflective of the times, don't you think?  Holes in our hearts.....