Friday, March 19, 2010

My really BIG project!

Off and on, for over five years, I have been learning, experiencing, planning and encouraging the development of a walking path in the town where we live.  No small task this trail building!

Now, we are making our first steps into actually building a trail. 

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We have, with hours of volunteer labor and the help of the city, taken two acres of over grown property and developed a beautiful, nature park/trailhead.park5

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We have had four work parties on the property.  These photos, taken last October, show 20 volunteers planting  willow, red cedar, cottonwood, big leaf maple and dogwood trees.  A total of 160 trees.

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In May of 2009, volunteers removed a mountain of blackberries and Canary grass overtaking a small pond on the property.

 

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From this…..

 

 

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to this and…….

 

 

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finally, this! 

Tomorrow, volunteers will be out there planting ferns, salal and roses for groundcover under a stand of fir trees.

What a sense of accomplishment to see the transformation of this area.  It is so beautiful and serene!  A quiet place to sit and contemplate.  One day this will be the starting point of an approximately one mile walk across town.

The neighborhood kids love it, too, they build forts and trails and find snakes and frogs.  A perfect place to develop and expand a child’s imagination while feeding their souls!  Have you read the book “Last Child in the Woods”?

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