Break from the Trees

I've been wandering through the Arboretum and... saw this trail heading off into the bush... I can never resist a good trail... let's follow it!

Looks like an old tree farm, or maybe an experimental tree plot?

And some scrambling up the sandstone...

A bit of a view... you can't see it but the pulp mill is in the distance...

This is cool... although the trail is getting a big jungly...

And then it opens up again.

Ummm... what happened to the clear trail? It's heading through a patch of bracken fern and broom...

OK... this is the most inconsistent trail! I wonder where it goes... maybe it doesn't go anywhere?

Oh, this is pretty broom... with yellow and orange flowers.

I know it's hideously invasive... and stinky... but it sure is pretty.

The trail just keeps going... and I'll keep following it... maybe there's a pot of gold at the end of it?

Nope... just some sandstone blocks...

And more tree farm stuff...

Wait... here's a brick... hmmm... where's that archaeologist pal of mine?

And a big open area... with some scattered bricks throughout the grass... maybe an old building?

 Oh... a bit of a concrete wall... old building foundation?

And a little hut made out of concrete blocks. Huh... I wonder what all of this was?

There's nothing left inside...

Little bear minds want to know... was it part of the Arboretum at one point? Or was it an old homestead?? Ah well... back to the Arboretum...

Trees Trees and More Trees

A few weeks back, I visited the old Arboretum... I had heard that this was a pretty cool location. It was started back in the 1950s by MacBlo (MacMillan-Bloedel logging company). They planted all sorts of weird trees from all over the world, trying to see what would grow well here.

Oh, pretty flower!

The Arboretum was neglected for many years but a volunteer group is now trying to get it spruced up...

There used to be old signs next to each tree which faded and rotted years ago. So the volunteers are trying to put up new signs... this one is for Black Walnut from the Eastern USA and Ontario...

Neat! I wonder if it actually produces walnuts in the fall?? Might have to come back here... if the squirrels don't beat me to it.

There's even a picnic table with a nice view of the mountains in the distance. Lunch? Snacks? No... sigh... must train sekrebeary better.

This one looks like an oak tree but... is it one of the local Garry Oaks??

It looks way too big... but there is no sign either. Huh... mystery oak!

I know this one!! It's a Big Leaf Maple - it's local...

So far... these are mostly local trees... I hope there are some more exotic ones...

 I know this one too - it's Laburnum... it's from Southern Europe but... lots of people have them in their yards here.

 Let's see... this one says... Blackberry.

At first I was like... seriously? But... it's the European variety not the invasive Himalyan variety that is everywhere around here. Although... how do I really know this is the European variety??

 Those look like a bunch of pine trees to me...

Yep... pine it is... but there is no sign here... so no idea what sort of pine.

Oh well... they look pretty...

Oh, this is a fir of some sort, I recognize the flat needles but...

The nearest sign says Maritime Pine from southern France, Portugal and Algeria... Ummm....

Psst... I think the volunteers might need some help... or maybe the signs are all mixed up. Or maybe there was a pine there at one point, but now it's dead? I found quite a few signs that didn't match the trees... like a pine sign near a deciduous tree...

And sometimes there were trees like this, but no signs nearby... 

 Oh, here's another oak... and the sign nearby says Garry Oak... our own local variety... so I'll go with that.

 Then, there was this one, which said Red Oak... but... it's all oak to me!

Oooh... this one looks different... hmmm... is it a Yew???

The bar looks kind of yew-y to me... let's see what the sign says...

It's a Pacific Yew!!

Score one for the Bear!

And this one... I'm going to say... hazelnut/filbert...

Score 2 for the Bear! This is fun...

Some of the trees just look sad... they are obviously not doing well in this climate.  The nearby sign said Swiss Mountain Pine... it probably doesn't like being at sea level...

 Here's one of the old signs...  It's for a Sakhalin Fir from Siberia... that would be neat...

But there's no tree anymore... guess it really didn't do well...

This one is supposed to be a Northern Catalpa from the eastern US... no idea if that is accurate....

 This one says European Ash... which looks about right...

American Beech... yup... looks like a beach!, at least the leaves do...

 Looks like they are trying to grow some paper birch here...

But I can tell you right now... birch does not do well down here. It does well up near Gramma's place but... down south, we really don't have any birch - the Big Leaf Maple grows here instead.

This sign says Sugar Maple which means... maple syrup!!!!

But... I don't really see any maple leaves... sigh.

Ummm... wow... it just keeps going and going!!!

 Huh... this looks like an interesting tree...

 It's pretty big... that's good growth for 60 years...

And they're tall too!!!

Do you recognize it? The bark is kind of reddish... they get really big... and like foggy coastal climates... It's the Giant Redwood!!! Cool...

And then there's this one... which has silver leaves... and weird shaped leaves. Huh... drawing a blank on this one.  Maybe a poplar?

Score another one for the bear - it's a Silver Poplar, which is a hybrid. Cool!! More later!