johnandlucie

Gardening for wildlife

On our summer strolls around the neighbourhood, we see many beautifully manicured front yard gardens. Some even look as if they come straight out of a magazine.

At times, we come across other gardens that are not so picture-perfect. We have come to appreciate that they are like that on purpose and are the work of mindful gardeners. Incorporating native flowers, shrubs and trees, those gardens are friendly to pollinators and provide food and shelter for wildlife.

In the past, we had paid little attention to this type of gardening, however, we now have the time and interest to learn more. Ottawa is home to the remarkable Fletcher Wildlife Garden (FWG). This public treasure is open year-round and free of charge. We love to visit it and immerse ourselves in the beauty and the fundamentals of ecological gardening

The Ottawa rock artist

Every summer, Remic Rapids Park is the setting for a remarkable display of balanced rock sculptures on the shore of the Ottawa River. The park is just a few kilometres from the city centre and offers expansive and relaxing views of the river, the rapids and the urban landscape in the distance.

The temporary public art display is the work of an exceptional artist named John Felice Ceprano, who has created his rock sculptures on this site since 1986, using the wide variety of rocks available in the river. What started as a project has become a regular fixture and people from Ottawa and far beyond return to Remic Rapids every summer to see and enjoy another original display of balanced rock sculptures.

Old Québec City

Québec City is unique in many ways. It is one of the oldest and, by some accounts, one of the most beautiful cities in North America. The city has a large and well-preserved historic district, which was recognized by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site in 1985.

We had not visited Québec City for quite a few years, so it was a delight to spend four leisurely days there recently. The city is best discovered on foot, so we left the car at home and took the train from Ottawa.

In a city that cherishes and preserves its history, we saw many sites that were pleasantly familiar. We also noted heritage buildings undergoing restoration, a few of the main public squares being beautified, and many new public sculptures and fountains associated with the city’s 400th anniversary in 2008.

Having no specific agenda or itinerary, we had time to wander and reflect on how it is possible to visit a familiar place with a mindset that keeps the experience fresh and exciting.

Paddling for joy

Summer is festival season in Ottawa, with multiple annual events running every weekend from June to September. The weekend closest to the summer solstice always brings back the Ottawa Dragon Boat Festival. The four-day event takes place at Mooney’s Bay Park and Beach.

The festival site offers entertainment for the whole family. In addition to boat racing, there are food trucks, information booths, artisan stalls, a children’s area and concerts in the evening. The festival attracts sizeable crowds since admission is free.

We spent a relaxing Saturday at the festival and cheered on the teams. The general atmosphere on site was good humoured and friendly. We observed the teams as they disembarked from their boats, and the camaraderie was palpable. We saw paddlers of different ages and levels of fitness. Teams had creative and colourful names printed on their t-shirts, which added to the festive atmosphere.

We noticed that quite a high proportion of the paddlers were women and older adults. From our observations, we mused that the sport appeared to foster an active lifestyle, while promoting participation and inclusivity. We were curious to find out more.

A jewel in Maine

A short but persuasive article in the Washington Post caught our attention recently. It was titled “Add some beauty to your summer travel with a trip to a garden.” In the article, the author shared her memories of being transported by the beauty and peacefulness of gardens she had visited. Although we personally tend to gravitate toward wild natural sites, we too enjoy a stroll through a lovely garden. This post is about one of them.

All gardeners can testify that every ornamental garden, big or small, has a story, and that story is a blend of love, patience, and steadfast labour. This is certainly the case for the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens (Gardens). The Gardens opened in 2007, after 16 years of dedicated effort by a small group of visionary community builders who not only conceived every aspect of the project but also made, we were told, a significant personal financial commitment to fund it.

Their foresight and patience were rewarded since the Gardens have become one of Maine’s major attractions, despite being situated a little bit off the beaten track, in the small town of Boothbay. The saying “if you build it, they will come,” associated with the movie Field of Dreams, surely applies to those beautiful gardens.

Great Sand Dunes

The Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve in Colorado showcases a very impressive and unique landscape. These remarkable dunes lay at the base of the 13,000-foot snow-capped peaks of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. While they are not the largest dunes in existence, they are the tallest in North America and they stretch over thirty square miles.

There is something that made this park feel different from any other U.S. National Park we have visited. Was it because of the silence or the vast open expanse? Or was it because of the dynamic nature of the dune-forming system? In this park, the human footprint is minimal; it’s all about the power of nature at work. We were awestruck in front of this exceptional natural spectacle.