Blogs from Alberta, Canada, North America - page 8

While I inadvertently explored the roads west of Calgary, the group walked in the gentle green parks of Cochrane. From the Cochrane Ranche parking lot, it was simple to take the path under the 1-A highway and the railway, and follow along the gurgling course of Big Hill Creek. An impressive underpass took the walkers safely across Highway 22, to stride beside the fast-flowing Bow River, high with spring run-off. Thick with puffy white clouds, the Alberta blue sky gave its colour to the water. Along side Jumping Pound Creek, the path turned from its westward direction to head south and eventually to a way back into the town’s beloved parks, filled with families and local walkers. In a quiet moment, a yearling deer unconsciously displayed its downy self, still warmed with remnants of winter fur, ... read more

Three groups of four walkers each set off at intervals to make up our city walk this week. In Griffith Woods, autumn surrounded us: dried grass, bare trees, traces of old snow, hidden animals. Only tiny Wood Violets twinkled spring colour. The excellent path, groomed but natural, cherished our feet for most of the way west along multiple strands of the Elbow River. The still water shone with reflections of treed vistas and sculptural bushes. Everywhere Red Osier Dogwoods shared their bright red branches. In the quiet reaches of the river, mallards slowly drifted and dipped for underwater plant-life. For indiscernible reasons, park maintenance entailed the felling of many trees, some for making the path, but others for purposes left to our imaginations and mildly curious conversation. The trees were left to disintegrate naturally, undoubtedly making ... read more

The sun shone palely on us all morning. A breeze came steadily from the north east all morning. And sparkles of snow showered us all morning. Spring in Alberta! We met to explore Confluence Park , also known as east Nose Hill Park. Divided naturally into a walkers group and a photographers group, we were pandemic safe. The wide Alberta sky showed off the strange humps and bumps of dried grasses in the Nose Creek valley. Indeed, icicles hung like diamond strands in the shelter of a foot bridge, exciting us with what would have been ordinary a month ago. The west arm of Nose Creek rushed past us. A picturesque little waterfall drew us off the pathway. Further along, in calmer waters, the ubiquitous mallard ducks quacked at our presence but kept on div... read more

Summer came to welcome our out-of-city venture in Chestermere by the irrigation canal. We met for a brisk walk in this prairie environment. The fields shone golden, and the cloudless sky reflected blue in the canal along our path. The water level was low, before the snow melt in the mountains fills the irrigation system later in the year. Thus, the bright orange url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boom_(navigational_barrier)#:~:text=A%20boom%20or%20a%20chain,to%20control%20or%20block%20navigation.booms before and after the dangerous weir seemed to be redundant, although signs warned sternly about portage. At first, birds were elusive. A trio of horses substituted interest. At last, we spied a Canada Goose tr... read more

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