(F)unschool in the Fall

Looking for gold in Terminal Creek.

spider

lovely twisted wood

Freezing hands (?!) in Quarry Park.

Tree-climbing above Belterra.

purple

more purple

Bugs on Bowen: A Thanksgiving Outing

Come and see what is happening in the world of Mini-Beasts on Bowen!

Join naturalist Will Husby at the meadow in Crippen Park (near the horse paddock) and hunt for insects and spiders in the old field and forest. Will will supply basic capture and release tools. Bring your own if you have insect nets and collecting gear.

Feel free to share any of your own bug photos — bring them on your smart phone or tablet.

Meet beside the horse paddock in the meadow at Crippen Park
Saturday October 12: 1:00–3:00 PM

Dress for the weather.
Children must be accompanied by an adult.

Camping at Gwyneth Lake

This past weekend a few Nature Club members went on our annual camping trip; this time to Gwyneth Lake, near Goldbridge. The drive up the Hurley was long and bumpy, but the wonderful company, the warm swimmable lake and gorgeous assortment of wildflowers was absolutely worth it.
(Photos: Emily van Lidth de Jeude)

Gwyneth Lake from the campsite

tiger lily

twin berry

one-sided wintergreen surrounded by twin flowers

camping face-paint

lupine

arnica

paintbrush

fireweed

northern checkerspot butterfly

bunchberry

pyrola

Adrian accidentally suggested a communal dinner... so we all put our dinners on the same table and shared a veritable feast!

...including giant marshmallows...

(F)unschool Bluffs and Low Tide Beach Outings

Last week we hiked up the bluffs on Mt. Collins and explored the forest behind them, too. There were various wildflowers in bloom, many different types of lichen and moss, and also patches of brilliantly green mosses from the recent rainfall. Photos follow...

meadow death camas on the bluff

looking up the bluff at arbutus trees

the view out over our island (that is deep bay, near the bottom)

the kids found this joyfully sunlit rock in the darkness of the forest

sea blush near the top of the bluffs

blue eyed marys delicately lining our path up

Then we had an extra (F)unschool outing the following Monday, in order to take advantage of the very low tide. While we didn't find some of the things we expected, like many many various seastars, and green anemones, we did find many different sizes and types of blenny, including red, green, grey, black, and various patterns, and one that was about 10 or 11 inches long! We also found urchins, many tiny seastars, various shore crabs and a dungeoness crab, many entertaining hermit crabs, stubby isopods, some sponges, various shellfish, small sea lemons (nudibranchs), and a northern clingfish, whose portrait I have included, here, for your entertainment! It's the only photo I took, that day! We also had some fun with some seemingly very personable rockweed isopods.

...and from the low-tide beach exploration: a northern clingfish!

Sundew eating a mosquito...

So many people ask how a sundew consumes its food, and I didn't really know, exactly. So I found this short video on Youtube -- enjoy!!

Collins Ridge Hike

Alan Whitehead kindly escorted a group of us up to the summit of Mt. Collins, around and over to Mud lake and Honeymoon lake, and back to Hood Point West, where we began. We also gratefully acknowledge the generosity of Sally Freeman, whose land we traversed.

The day was quite lovely and mild. It barely rained at all, and we found many treasures, along the way. Here are a few of them:

Rough-skinned newts like this one carry a toxin; be sure to wash hands thoroughly after handling briefly.

snack-stop

coral root orchid

summit cairn - Photo by Alan Whitehead

Everybody at the summit

my children call this bubblegum mushroom... possibly purple jelly-drop cup?

Mud Lake

unidentified eggs - slug or snail?

first view of Honeymoon Lake

Honeymoon Lake!

Look closely at those logs further out there on the lake...

What do you see?

Sundew! Carnivorous plants thriving by the thousands in Honeymoon Lake.

A dragonfly sitting very still, soaking up the warmth. Possibly it recently left its larval skin.

Amphibian eggs of some sort, deposited on a log?

An owl pellet!

... and some of our beautiful indigenous columbine.

photo by Alan Whitehead

the group by one of the big firs we passed - photo by Alan Whitehead