So the spring weather in Canada rolled on to the full heat of a Canadian summer, with my parents joining me in pretty much the nicest week weather-wise of my entire time in Canada. There were plenty of opportunities for exploration and adventures. And it was lovely for them to be able to meet the A Rocha community, join in with a volunteer day, come to our music night and cook pizza for dinner in the cob oven. I'm not going to say a lot, but thought I'd share some of the beautiful pictures from spring and early summer adventures in Canada! Enjoy!
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| Red elderberry against a very blue sky during survey work. |
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| More blue skies and a willow, taken whilst Salish Sucker trapping. |
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| Salmonberry, probably my favourite flower! |
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| Bleeding Heart, these little plants carpet the forest floor at this time of year. |
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| Trillium, it turns pinky-purple once it has been fertilised! |
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| The magnolia flowers at Brooksdale are wearing little Wizard hats for some reason... |
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| Beautiful fungus, oddly reminiscent of the weathered rock of the Grand Canyon! |
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| Driving down 0 Ave: 'and on our left the USA, on our right Canada!' |
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| A big old rootstock at Lynn Canyon |
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| Don't look down? Lynn Canyon |
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| That's right, just smile at the camera! Lynn Canyon |
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| Roaring blue water, Lynn Canyon |
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| So inviting, and so very icy! |
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| Rickety bridge at Lynn Canyon... |
My parents and I explored Stanley Park and walked around the seawall in the baking hot weather:
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| The Inukshuk in English Bay |
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| Through the Inukshuk |
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| Is it a bird? Is it a rock? |
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| Rock balancing skills |
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| The view from Stanley Park |
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| Stanley Park Totem Poles |
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| Lunch on the beach... |
We also ventured further from home, out to the gulf islands:
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| A much less snowy Saltspring Island! |
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| Dad practising his new found rock balancing talent. |
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| I found a miniature Balrog (or something) living on the seaweed... |
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| A sand dollar! (like a flat sort of sea urchin) |
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| The island way of life... |
And we ventured even further afield, up the Sea to Sky highway all the way to Whistler!
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| Beautiful mountains, but it felt far too hot for there to be any snow left at all! |
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| Confused: last time I was here, I was 15 and there was a lot more snow! |
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A Steller's Jay on the trails around Lost Lake, Whistler
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| Dinner in Whistler |
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| The sun was starting to set when we stopped at the stunning Shannon Falls, the third highest falls of BC |
My parents' visit was also a good chance to share some of the places local to A Rocha that were close to my heart:
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| Early evening on the pier at White Rock. |
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| Charming the chickadees in Campbell Valley Regional Park |
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| Mum's favourite: the Douglas Squirrel |
At the end of the week, I spent some time saying farewell to A Rocha Brooksdale and the people who live there, and then my parents and I set off to Vancouver Airport, for the flight back to Manchester. It's been a wonderful eight months, and I was sad to be leaving. But even though new adventures beckoned back in the UK, it certainly didn't feel like goodbye for ever...
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| Until the next time Canada! |
