A Patch of Woods New to Us

The thing that many outsiders don't realize about Vancouver, BC is that it sits on the very edge of wilderness. Most everybody in the Lower Mainland lives within the area constrained by the mountains to the north. The growth must head eastward out the Fraser River valley.  Access to the edge of the wilderness is primarily through national, provincial, district, or municipal parks only.  One is seldom ever more than 25 kilometers from unspoiled and undeveloped forest land.

 

Furthermore, even within the surrounding communities, patches of forest remain as parkland. Today, we looked at Google Maps and drove to a spot only 20 minutes from our apartment where we'd never set foot.

Today's river is protected from development on either side.  As we'd not gone before, I set the GPS for Coquitlam River Park parking.  We didn't do much of a hike but only walked from the road to the river and back.  Some folks were out either riding bicycles, jogging, or walking dogs.

 

This area is in what is called a Heat Warning at present.  It is rather nice seeing the weather get up to 30°C (86°F) in the afternoon.  As is always the case, evenings cool down substantially.  In fact, tonight will hit 16°C (61°F) and the lows will be even cooler later in the week.  My hope though is that this dry spell doesn't continue for too long without some rain.  Our area is prone to forest wild fires without fairly frequent rain.

I love living near a big city, but especially this one because it's next to wilderness.