Two Weekend Walks

Rain dripped all day Saturday. It was so dark it felt like mid-winter. In the afternoon the skies cleared up a little, so I grabbed my umbrella and my camera and headed out for the bog. Rithet's Bog is a preserved piece of history in Saanich and is surrounded by a trail that wanders through trees, blackberry brambles, across a small creek and along a bit of open water. It's one of my favourite places to walk.

I was glad for my umbrella - it soon started raining. There's not a lot of open water, but people like to come and sit on the benches and watch the ducks and wild geese that frequent this bog. No birds were in view today, they were all huddled somewhere keeping out of the drizzle.

Raindrops making ripples in the water that reach out to each other, connect and then disappear, only to be replaced by more ripples. The bog was quiet except for the sound of rain on my umbrella. Under the trees, I moved the umbrella away from my head and heard the sound of thousands of raindrops falling through the trees - beautiful and ethereal.

On Sunday afternoon the sun shone and we went for a short walk with friends after church to Tod Inlet. Here, light filters through golden trees onto the leaf-hidden forest floor.

 On the incoming tide evergreens stand upsidedown. Almost bare branches droop over the water in skeletal beauty.

 And here we are, squinting into the autumn sunshine, surrounded by nature's glory.