I know it's been ages sense I've posted here. Been mostly posting on Instagram. I just thought I would share the super neat experience we had today seeing a river Otter playing on the Harold Balazs statue in the Riverfront Park today. I've run into a family of otters once before when walking along the Columbia Plateau trail but have never seen one downtown. They are little clowns and appear to love the attention of being photographed.
What a glorious space this Manito Park is! Every season is gorgeous and completely different and to be experienced! I went walking in Manito today to enjoy the spring flowers. A veritable feast for the senses!
Finally got a chance to get over to one of my favorite places to walk, Tubbs Hill in Coeur d'Alene yesterday. The trail along the southern shore is my favorite. The arrowleaf balsam root flowers were popping out all over the place and the forest is lush and green. Saw an Osprey high up in a tree and a nice couple pointed out some deer that were feasting on the hill. For all of you Eastern Washington folks that have never made the trip over to walk this gem of a trail make a point of doing it this year!
Because I was out the Indian Trails direction this morning I was able to walk the Indian Painted Rocks trail. This trail runs along the Little Spokane and is a wonderful place for bird and other critter sightings. It's still a little sleepy without many critters out and about yet. The chipmunks were awake though. You can make a long loop trail by continuing on to the Knothead Valley Trail at the top of the hill. This makes an almost 7 mile loop and brings you back down a little further north on Rutter Parkway. As you can see from the pictures there are a lot of trees laying down. The fire from a few years ago damaged a lot and they have fallen or been cut and left in place for natural habitat.
I really enjoy getting my mileage in at the local cemeteries. The beauty and history of the places keeps my eyes and mind engaged as I wander around. These places hold the true history of the area, from the earliest settlers, dignitaries and just regular folks they tell stories. The Fairmont Memorial Gardens along the Spokane River behind the VA hospital is one of the most beautiful with its views of the River and wonderful memorials and architecture. These are not places of mourning but celebrations of the lives that came before us.
I know it's been ages sense I've posted here. Been mostly posting on Instagram. I just thought I would share the super neat experie...
