On Getting Out There – A Meditation

We forget sometimes the everyday power and ordinary wonder of immersing ourselves in the natural world. It’s a possibility, an opportunity, that is nearly always available to us. Authentic experiences of nature don’t require an epic excursion into the wilderness for days on end, into apparently pristine surroundings where all evidence of human incursion has been elided. The true magic is that, no matter how much urban we try to impose on the natural landscape, there is still wild all around us.

January 24, 2016 1

Licorice Fern: A Buried Candy Store

As the winter season approaches, it may seem like the time for fresh plant life is over. Not so. While we may not be enjoying the same leafy profusion brought by those April showers (though truthfully, here on the West Coast they're not always so very distinct from the January showers, the July showers, or the October showers), the winter months bring their share of new growth.

November 27, 2015 0

Five Very Green Things

One of the very best things about this time of year is the stunning variety of greens everywhere you turn. Trees and shrubs are growing their new leaves, and all manner of plants are literally springing up out of the soil. Today I want to share a few of the new green things I came across on my hike - I hope you relish their freshness as much as I did!

May 8, 2013 2

Spring Feast For the Eyes: Chocolate Lilies

The Chocolate Lily (Fritillaria affinis for the botanically-minded) is one of the coolest and yet commonly overlooked spring-flowering plants on the Island. They may not be as showy as Camas or Shooting Stars, but I think their bell-like shape and subtle shading is absolutely gorgeous. Fair warning, they don't have the nicest scent (think skunk cabbage rather than wild roses!).

April 26, 2012 2

Coastal Life at Patricia Bay

One of my favourite places on the peninsula to hang out for an hour or two is Patricia Bay (Pat Bay to us local folk). For a small cove area with a roadway running right alongside it, there's an astonishing array of wildlife and activity to be found at the water's edge. Combine this with phenomenal sunsets, and the place pretty much can't be beat. There's also an incredible amount to be learned by taking the time to relax, sit a spell, and observe the goings-on of coastal life in the bay.

April 14, 2012 0

Spring Means Farms and Farm Babies

To my mind, one of the best parts of the spring season is going around and visiting local farms, checking out the fields full of new frolicking babies and their mums! This past week I've taken the time to get out and lean over a few farm fences, in both North Saanich and Central Saanich, watching little calves and lambs exploring their world and enjoying the sunshine. It got me thinking about the abundance of farmland in southern Vancouver Island, so that's the theme of this post (along with featuring some of the ridiculously adorable babies I met!).

April 11, 2012 0

I Think I Just Saw A Toucan! Local Birding Checklists

Being new to the world of birdwatching, I often feel overwhelmed by the sheer number of birds there are. There are just so many, both hanging out in the bush or on the beach waiting to be identified, and on the pages of the birding field guides. It's hard to sort out just what I might be looking at, and what the odds are that I'm seeing a particular bird, given the area and time of year.

April 11, 2012 5

Encountering the Sandhill Crane

As I've mentioned before, I'm not the world's most patient or observant birder, but you positively can't miss these guys. They are enormous (about the size of a Great Blue Heron) and make a noise kind of like you'd imagine a pterodactyl might make. Also, they're pretty used to their human neighbours in the park, so they'll casually stroll down the path toward you. It's a little disconcerting being that close to such large pointy beaks, I'm not going to lie! I was completely intrigued by these cool-looking birds, and I immediately wanted to learn a little more about them.

February 3, 2012 10

Hidden Gem: Shoal Harbour Bird Sanctuary

Today I want to point you in the direction of a super accessible local park that you may not have heard too much about. Shoal Harbour Bird Sanctuary is right in downtown Sidney, and while definitely an urban park rather than a wilderness one, it boasts some pretty fantastic ocean vistas. My favourite way to check out the view and the birds there is to head out onto Resthaven Island, a little point of land that's separated from the mainland by an itty bitty channel (and joined by a short and sturdy two-lane bridge). There's a well-maintained loop trail there - it's actually a municipal park, a narrow one that skirts the edge of the island.

January 30, 2012 3

A Tale of Mice and ‘Fir’ Trees

A veritable icon of West Coast life, Douglas-fir trees are ubiquitous throughout the coastal region. Beaten only by the Coast Redwoods for the title of World's Tallest Trees, these ancient giants can grow to over 85 metres (278 feet) tall. That's more than 25 stories high! The reason for the oddly hyphenated common name of Douglas-fir is that these evergreen trees actually aren't fir trees at all. Their scientific name, Pseudotsuga menziesii, literally labels this tree species as a 'false' (pseudo) 'fir' (tsuga). Gotta love that Latin.

January 26, 2012 7