A hot week, and a weekend of rain, and we are transformed…

16C/3:30PM

With all due respect to the geese (who return far too early), spring in the river valley is largely absent until the second half of May, when the leaves unfurl and the dandelions appear, seemingly overnight. As I made my way down the staircase below the MacDonald Hotel, the morning already warm, the scene that greeted me was like a child’s drawing of nature: a band of blue, a band of green, and a bright sun in the corner of the sky. Broadly descriptive, entirely beautiful. Around the corner on the south side of the Low Level Bridge, the scent of the newly verdant river valley was intensely sweet, and unmistakeable. It is May. Late May. If only photographs were scratch and sniff.

The goal was to walk across the Cloverdale Pedestrian Bridge, like I’ve done a thousand times before, and will continue to do for the finite future of this bridge. In the recent past, I routinely crossed the Cloverdale as part of my commute to my Mill Creek/Strathcona neighbourhood, and yet I need no reason other than my own edification to venture into this part of the river valley. Today, however, I wanted to be counted. The City is monitoring activity on the bridge for a few days. Anything I can do to persuade the men-in-suits that this bridge and the incredibly gorgeous area of the river valley it serves is a key asset to this city, deserving of protection, not development.

Curiously, the counter is not on all day. There was a guy at the north end of the bridge changing the batteries, and he said the cameras are pre-programmed to go on and off, and that the cameras were now ‘done’ for the morning. I wonder if this program includes the lunch hours? Would it not be beneficial to the transportation department’s position on the fate of the Cloverdale Bridge to show under-usage by only tracking walkers, bikers, runners, and other river valley enjoyists before and/or after peak hours, when numbers are fewer? The meat of the day is between 11:00 PM and 1:00 PM, when downtown’s nature-starved masses pour into Louise McKinney Park and the surrounding trails and parks. Shoulders are lowered, muscles stretched, sore eyes are given unimaginable sights, and a peaceful, recreational time is had by all. I hope they count these people. Also, as a friend pointed out, with construction on the Walterdale Bridge, feeder trails in Rossdale and the Kinsmen are either completely out of bounds, or altered. This will surely have an impact on the number of people using the Cloverdale Bridge. I’m no conspiracy theorist, but it does make me want to know more about the City’s tabulation methods.

The ‘business’ of this walk completed, I was left with the magnificence of the river valley in late May. Not all the way there yet, but close. The dominate colour is lime, the leaves still weeks from the lush green of mid-summer. The curving rows of apple trees in Louise McKinney Park are in full blush, but have not yet blossomed. More heat, maybe a little rain, and the entire palette will change. It’s a beautiful time of year.

25C

Here is the original notification from the fine folks of the Save Edmonton’s Downtown Footbridge advocacy group: “The City has notified us they are finally setting up cameras on and around the bridge from May 20-25 to gather information on how many pedestrians, cyclists, and people using other modes are using the bridge. On May 27, 28, and 31, they will be on the bridge talking to people about which trails they use to access the bridge, how frequently they use the bridge, and whether they use the bridge recreationally and/or as a commuting link. They’ll also host an online survey from May 20-31 on the Valley Line project website.

HAVE YOUR SAY! Come out to the bridge and complete the survey to let the city know we demand a better way. Not only will their route close the entire area for nearly three years straight, it will permanently destroy a natural section of the river valley and one of our city’s best livable spaces. Save Edmonton’s Downtown Footbridge has come up with a route that enhances the city rather than degrading it and–will save taxpayers tens of thousands of dollars in doing so!”

YES!

I swallowed a seed puff, or an diaphanous-winged bug. Either way, it was involuntary, and it stuck in my throat. Stupid spring. I suppose I shouldn’t walk with my mouth open, but it all happened so fast. I did have a momentary thought that whatever was lodged in my throat was now laying eggs, but I opted for sanity. Hopefully if it was a bug, it died on the way down.

Other than the unintentional late lunch, the walk down to the creek via Westbrook was lovely and hot – 21 degrees and mostly overcast. Possibly too hot for the dog, who teetered at the top of a hill with the intention of barreling down to the creek, just a shimmering brown snake from this distance. Lucky for all of us she wisely heeded my slightly screamy warning after I assured her that we would find a better place to take a dip further down the path. About 10 minutes later, we found a gnarly trail through the brush, which opened into a sort of beach. A shitty beach, but what it lacked in ambience it more than made up for in murky (but running) water and sand. The creek is dark from organic matter (and unmentionable beaverish activities), but in 12 years of swimming in Whitemud Creek, Maggie’s never had a problem, other than some residual stink.

This was a new area of the creek for me. It’s a monkey trail, which will be obscured once it thickens with foliage, but it’s a better place for Maggie to cool off than below one of the bridges where the water is not as shallow. Also, it’s not too far from the trail head. You know, I’m thinking about these trails in terms of what the dog can handle, not what I need or want. I always have fun, and I love walking with Maggie, but it’s not long enough. Who’s gonna take me for a walk?

Oh, forgot to write about a bird I saw in Whitemud a week ago. It’s a Phoebe. Never heard of this bird before, and it took a concerted effort on Facebook to identify this pretty little guy with the beautiful voice.

2:00 PM/21C

The brown season will be coming to an end soon, but until then, yet another monochromatic walk through the woods. This is not to say it wasn’t stirring, and occasionally beautiful, especially near the creek, but I am looking forward to the lush green explosion that is the end of May. In my short walk yesterday (about 50 minutes) in Mill Creek Ravine, prior to an appointment, the sun shone hot on my head without the tempering of leaves. There are buds, but they are one or two weeks away from a full unfurl. I am impatient for green.

Yesterday, 19C

May 6th: Whoa…what a cruddy morning. Over to Rossdale to feed a couple of kitties, yesterday and today. On Monday, the fog rolled into the river valley, so I decided to park at Southgate, and take the train downtown, rather than park in Mill Creek. Not a good idea to stroll through the woods in fog, especially at a time in the morning when no one else is around. Took the stairs from the MacDonald Hotel to Rossdale, and then back downtown via Louise McKinney. The sun, by late morning, had burned off the fog, so I could have walked into Mill Creek after all, but with my car at Southgate, I would have had to double back to catch the train, and my walk would have been hours long. Sticking to my original plan, I was happy to walk in the river valley in cold sunshine, even for half an hour.

Saw a Song Sparrow singing his/her heart out by the river. So beautiful! I was able to capture the bird mid-song without startling it. I thought he/she might have been a meadowlark, who like this bird sing with their heads thrown back, but I’m not even sure we have meadowlarks in Edmonton, and a birding friend later identified it as a Song Sparrow. There were also a ton of geese – sittin’ around, honking from the skies, waddling along the trail near the river. Years ago, there were just two geese who returned every year a month too early, laying their eggs on a pillar beneath the Cloverdale Pedestrian Bridge. I like to think these guys are all related.

This morning (May 7th), snow on the ground and even colder than yesterday. But…no fog, so a longer walk. Parked in my old neighbourhood in Mill Creek, and then walked down to Rossdale via the trail that runs along Scona Road.

It was brilliantly cold on my face. Fed the cats, and then headed over to Mill Creek Ravine. The landscape was washed out. Not another soul on the trail, but I did see crocuses in bloom at the Muttart, which were cheering. In Mill Creek, the morning snow had melted, and even though I could see buds on the trees, it did not seem like spring. The cold, sunless air was too miserly to yield the fragrances of burgeoning growth in the ravine. Quietly beautiful though, like a landscape in soft pencil. Piles of blankets and the occasional dirty mattress lay in piles along the trail – the gleanings of the weekend river valley cleanup. I didn’t participate, but will do so once I get back into the ‘hood. I hope the users of these items don’t miss them.

It started to snow again, little pellets of meanness, as I walked to my car. In total about 90 minutes of river, wood, and birdsong. I’ll take it.

Noon/2C

Incredibly gorgeous day. The hottest thus far this year at 22C! Spent the morning in the garden raking stuff, and the afternoon in Whitemud Creek doing stuff with Maggie. We drove over to Aspen Drive to avoid a long walk into the ravine, which tires her out. By the ravine, there was a sign saying it off limits due to flooding. Strange. As per usual, I ignored it. Between the second and third bridge, near the boardwalk, there was indeed signs of a flood. A big one. Along the creek, a fair amount of damage on the bank, and parts of the boardwalk were broken. Mill Creek often floods in the spring, but I’m not as familiar with the peculiarities of Whitemud. It’s just weird because I walked along the North Saskatchewan yesterday, and it wasn’t high. We had a lot of rain a week ago (30mm), but not enough to flood a creek, I would think. In any case, Maggie enjoyed the remaining pools of mucky water. Many, many times. First time to have a wet, smelly dog in a hot car. Also first time to use the AC, although I eventually opted for open windows to better circulate the stink.

Saw a couple of ducks (Common Goldeneyes) on the water, and tried to get a photo, but all of them were blurred. Stupid ducks. Stupid photographer. I think I also saw a beaver, but just his head. I’m sure the Whitemud beaver population are rather busy (as beavers, maybe) putting their homes back in order. Stupid flood.

Yesterday, I walked from the University to Rossdale and Louise McKinney Park. All is as per usual, which is to say, beautiful. With this warmth, and the constant birdsong, it’s discombobulating to look around and see unfoliated woods. Tomorrow is May. By the end of May, it will be a transformed landscape. Yum.