Coast Lines

If you are looking for my most recent blog posts, I am now posting from my Victoria blog address. You can find it here: https://linesfromthecoast.blogspot.com/

Looking for the Wild

Living near downtown it is hard to find "wildness" whenever I step out the door. Yet I enjoy "intact ecosystems", as someone recently called them. Landscapes where nature is not manicured or mowed, pruned or "cleaned up". Just wild.

Occasionally I miss this kind of wildness ... Newfoundland tundra

Another wild image from Newfoundland -- the sand dunes where Piping Plovers nest. I love the rawness of this landscape!

In Salmon Arm, the "wildness" that is closest to home is the nature trail along the railway track. For a certain distance, between Christmas Island and Appleyard, I can get away from road noise. And if there is no train coming, it's quiet. The random thickets along the lakeshore trail host a myriad of birds, so at any time of year I can hear birdsong.

A wild section of the nature trail along Shuswap Lake in Salmon Arm

And, in Victoria, I am fortunate to have the wild ocean below Dallas Road within a few minutes' walk. The ocean waves overpower any traffic noise. And the wildness and power of nature are there in fullness. I love the kelpy smell of the ocean, and the constant ebb and flow, the sucking of water on the rocks.

Kelp strewn ashore

The ebb and flow of the ocean; as the water recedes, it makes a rhythmic sucking sound. 

Waves on a blustery day

Such a variety of kelp!

Rocks and kelp below Dallas Road

The video below is a little bit of "wild".

Heavy rains in January and early February caused localized flooding in various areas of Vancouver Island. In Victoria, saturated soils caused bank slumpage along some of the cliffs below Dallas Road.

Heavy rains caused bank slumpage along Dallas Road

Trail closed due to bank slumpage

On Friday Feb 7 the City of Victoria was already working on getting the trail reopened. I was impressed at how fast they were responding. I spoke to a city worker who said they didn't want to keep it closed for very long.

Working to reopen the trail along the water's edge

On a beautiful sunny day, no one wanted to stay away from the water. I am not the only one who loves the wild! Many people had crossed the barricade.

Wildness as dusk falls, along Dallas Road

IMPORTANT NOTE! This is my last post in Shuswap Reflections. Now that I am moving to Victoria full time, I am switching to my new blog at Coast Lines:
 https://linesfromthecoast.blogspot.com/

The Colours of James Bay - Part 3

This is the third post I've made about the buildings and colours of James Bay. 

Since the first two, I have learned more about the details of the neighbourhood's architecture, and especially about efforts to protect its heritage. 

I continue to be struck by the beauty of the buildings in this area, the craftsmanship, and the architectural details....and, of course, their vibrant colours!

Colour is what a visitor notices first. In my last post I talked about the predominance of creams, greens and burgundy.

The house below has those colours, but also has many fine architectural elements.

These kinds of details all contribute subtly to the ambience and atmosphere of James Bay. I may not always notice all the finer points of a house's construction, but the overall aesthetic imprints itself on me as I wander.

Notice the craftsmanship and details -- the half-moon window in the attic, the supports for the roof, (above the double windows on the second level), the scalloped fascia above the first floor windows, and the finishing of the woodwork around the bay window. 

Below is another example of detailed craftsmanship - the curved lines of the stained glass window, the carefully cut wood detail on either side of the porch support beams, and the balancing of curved and straight lines.  

Another example of craftsmanship. Notice the stained glass window, and the carefully cut wood detail at the top on either side of the porch support posts.  Also notice the tapering at the top of the two posts.

The Victoria Heritage Foundation has prepared a heritage walking tour map of James Bay.  

https://victoriaheritagefoundation.ca/walkingtours/jamesbay_tour/jamesbaymap.html 

The website and downloadable maps contain much information on the different architectural styles that the buildings reflect. I have shown three below. There is at least one example of each of these styles in the photos in this post.

Italianate, 1860 - 1900. Source: Victoria Heritage Foundation

Queen Anne, 1880 - 1910. Source: Victoria Heritage Foundation

Edwardian Foursquare, 1900 - 1920. Source: Victoria Heritage Foundation

The Victoria Heritage Foundation credits what it calls "community activism" in the 1970's for raising awareness about the value of heritage of Victoria's older neighbourhoods. At the time, both high and low-rise apartments were being constructed in these areas close to downtown, and this meant the loss of many older buildings. The trend has been slowed, but not stopped.

Protecting the heritage of James Bay, and other older neighbourhoods of Victoria, is an ongoing activity.  The James Bay Neighbourhood Association (https://jbna.org/) plays a significant role in monitoring development proposals for James Bay. 

Different kinds of details show on this house: the railing at the upper window with the columns supporting the roof, and the lattice work on the windows of the main level.

The arched doorway adds a focal point to the design and softens the vertical and horizontal lines, as do the scalloped siding elements.

The support columns for the porch reflect intricate work with hand tools, and have been painted to highlight this.

Details I appreciated on this house were the woodwork around the porch, the bay window, the attic window, as well as the colours chosen for the paint.

From the finials on the roof to the second floor window, to the porch and bay windows, this house has so many features that contribute to the enjoyment of walking the areas around downtown Victoria.

The houses I have featured in the post up till this point have been painted in the green / burgundy / cream / neutral tones I have noticed dominating in James Bay. The Victoria Heritage Commission provides grants for restoring old houses, and has done so for many years. One of the requirements, if a house is to be painted, is that a palette be used that is appropriate for heritage buildings. Presumably the colours I see so frequently are part of this palette.

The green / burgundy / cream palette is balanced by floral splashes, even in the dull days of November and December,

But James Bay is not limited to muted shades. There is a riot of colour here!

A few examples follow. 

Olympia Street, near Dallas Road

Along Dallas Road

Another house along Dallas Road

On Menzies Street at Michigan

Purple steps and a green house!

Niagara Street

Muted colours blend with brighter ones  

This heritage house in the Queen Anne style, on Battery Street, was purchased by the Capital Region Housing Corporation, refurbished, and incorporated into a subsidized housing project.

The fine details and beautiful paint job on this house strike me every time I walk by.

I like the diamond-shaped window and the fine details above the main floor windows, as well as the curved pathway.

Niagara Street

Fisherman's Wharf definitely offers colour.

The aptly named Rosewood Inn on Michigan Street

Niagara Street 

Sometimes the colour is the door!

The door has transformed this building, which is a private residence on Simcoe Street, although appears to have been converted from a previous unknown use.

Colour on window trim

Some of the photos above have hinted at landscaping. Here are a couple more examples of how selection of plants influences the area's atmosphere.

A recently landscaped front yard

The plants in this collection contrast wonderfully with the colours of the house

I have walked many kilometres around the streets of James Bay, and have not yet tired of the beauty of the houses and landscaped yards. 

Giant Sequoias in Victoria

I have been awestruck the last few days, by a tree.

We are house-sitting for a friend who lives beside Irving Park in James Bay, on the top floor of her apartment building (14th, although it is really 13th, since the numbering skips from 12 to 14). Looking out her window, I saw the spire of a tall tree, which looked to be taller than the building. Assuming 14 feet per floor, that makes the tree at least 182 feet tall.

After talking to another neighbour, and researching on the internet, I have learned that this tree is probably one of the two or three largest and tallest trees in Victoria. It is a Giant Sequoia, planted in the late 1850's, from seedlings gifted to Victoria by the state of California.

Giant Sequoia, Irving Park. This photo was taken from a 14th floor window.

This particular tree is in Irving Park, located at the corner of Michigan and Menzies Streets, and named for the Irving estate which was located here. 

There are a number of Giant Sequoias in Victoria. In California, where they are native, they have been known to be as old as 3,000 years. Three millennia! 

The tree that I look at out the window is but a baby at perhaps 150 years old.

I found the following diagram that compares some of the planet's big trees. The Sequoia may not be the tallest, but because of the diameter of its trunk, it is the largest on the planet.

Source: https://vancouverislandbigtrees.blogspot.com/

There are a number of other Giant Sequoias in Victoria, each with some claim to fame. One at the Campus Honda dealership on Burnside and Finlayson grows surrounded by pavement. The tree, estimated at 125 feet tall, has been lit up with over 2,500 lights this Christmas. 

Giant Sequoia, Victoria. Source: https://www.peninsulanewsreview.com/news/giant-sequoia-to-light-up-victoria-sky/ Photographer: Megan Williams

I am so impressed that this tree still stands, coexisting with commercial interests.

Another tall tree which also grows on private property is on the corner of Moss and Richardson Streets.

Giant Sequoia at the corner of Moss and Richardson Streets Source: https://vancouverislandbigtrees.blogspot.com/2012/12/largest-tree-in-victoria-bc-is-giant.html

Giant Sequoia at the corner of Moss and Richardson Streets
Source: https://vancouverislandbigtrees.blogspot.com/2012/12/largest-tree-in-victoria-bc-is-giant.html

There are of course Giant Sequoias in Beacon Hill Park, and there is one in front of the Legislature. That tree is considered the most frequently photographed tree in Victoria. Here is the plaque on the tree. As noted, it is the official provincial Christmas tree!

I see evidence of great appreciation for trees in Victoria. According to an article in the James Bay Beacon, at one time there used to be tours of some of the streets in James Bay, just to look at the heritage trees. Within a small area of a few blocks, over 40 varieties of significant heritage trees were identified. Irving Park, where the Giant Sequoia stands that I so enjoy, is at the centre of this area.

While the tours in the community no longer take place, there is still tree appreciation. I was walking through Beacon Hill Park when I came across a group of people with a park staff person; they were enjoying a "Tree Appreciation Day"!

Beacon Hill Park

I have seen a variety of efforts to build around trees, rather than remove them. 

Here are a couple of creative examples:

Fence custom-built around a tree, off Dallas Road, near Menzies Street

Another fence built around a tree, this one on Government Street

With all the development and redevelopment taking place in different parts of Victoria, may this spirit of tree appreciation continue.