“Live in the sunshine,swim the sea, drink the wild air…” ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Posted on by Laila

wilderness

While most people refer to Surrey as the suburbs, for me it’s always been ‘city life’.

I hear the noise of traffic that most people might not even hear, loudly. The pace of life, the hustle, bustle and crime just become too much sometimes and at times the impatience I feel with all of it demands escape.

When that happens… often prompted by a valued long time reader and friend… it’s time to head off as far away from people as I can get, and reconnect with what keeps the core of my being whole.

As someone who grew up in northern BC, nature has always been a part of my life but with every day I grow older I feel a stronger pull back to those roots nurtured by my parents.

There is tremendous peace to be found in heights and sights not seen by the madding crowd. While I enjoy immensely the sea at Porteau Cove… and the happiness shown by those visitors who are new to the inherent beauty of our province… I find more pleasure in travelling the road less traveled to places like Diamond Head trail-head in Garibaldi Park.

To see and be able to detail the views that sweep away everything but the reverence of this amazing land we live in,is to put words to the indescribable.Even I am incapable of doing so.

From sunbeams so ethereal they seem otherworldly, to water so clear you can see every grain of sand on the bottom, to the sky so blue it nearly hurt the eyes to look at it… today was an incredible day.

We really do live in one of the most diverse, unique places on earth and our natural areas provide not only immense relief from the demands of our daily lives, but endless tourism opportunities. Let’s not screw this up…ok?

*click on the first photo to scroll through in full size format.

11 thoughts on ““Live in the sunshine,swim the sea, drink the wild air…” ~Ralph Waldo Emerson”

  2. We seem to need endless economic growth, or the financial/banking systems collapses. Our problem is a system that demands endless growth. I think it has to do with the way money is created as debt, with interest added. Debt just keeps growing as interest compounds.

    In order to sustain all the growing debt, the GDP needs to grow every year. But Earth is finite and cannot sustain endless GDP growth. I think this is our central problem. Changing government without really addressing this issue won’t change much. IMO.

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  3. I went for a bike ride yesterday. Ended up in Burnaby’s Deer Lake Park. Lived in Burnaby 35 years……..Never been there before.
    Great park hardly anyone around, quiet. Saw a tiny garter snake slithering acroos the path in the sunshine. Then spotted a male ringnecked pheasant eating bugs on the side of the trail. Walked to within 5 ft of it before it sauntered away from me. A crow stopped eating to watch me then continued eating as i rode within 5 ft of it. There were signs indicating a large wild cat had been spotted nearby .The park is huge. Lots of vantage points to look at the lake..
    A nice, stress free afternoon.
    Sorry no pics.
    🙂

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    1. Thanks for this. So often living in the city we don’t take the time to stop and smell the roses, yet in the lower mainland these beautiful, serene places are all around us.

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      1. And many can’t get out of the city to connect in the way I prefer to, which makes it all that more important to offer the opportunity to connect with nature in our urban settings in multiple ways. Where city parks are so crowded and noisy that there is no scarcely space to sit, it speaks to how inherent this need is! Connecting can happen in your own backyard, your patio, your balcony with a few pots and some lovely plants. Create your own oasis. Or if you can, get out and explore the wilderness just waiting for you.

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    2. I think I’ve been there only once… and to be honest I’m not sure if it was this park or another..lol.

      Sounds like a dream though! It’s on the list. Any suggestion for the best place to access?

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      1. Deer Lake has a bunch of different access points. I started on the western edge( Royal Oak) and worked my way uphill. There are a ton of trails crossing back and forth. The best view of the park is from the trails at the south side of the Park ( high up on the hill where Oakalla Prison used to be). You look down on the lake and north towards Burnaby Mountain.
        I guess it just depends on whether you want to walk downhill back to your car or uphill to your car at the end of the visit………

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  5. Ummm, with all respect JDC, I never lost the light to begin with…. for years I’ve shared posts just like this one of places I’ve been, encouraging others to do so as well. I’ve always believed that people only move to save what they have come to value and love… and when it comes to nature, that happens through personal connections.

    But yeah,I saw the light yesterday..lol.. it was so bright I clearly needed new sunglasses!! 😉

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  6. I know. I am just encouraging you to re-consider rural, is all. As you know, it has a lot going for it. I used to love my ‘city’ life but then, more and more, I found that I wasn’t actually using it all that much. Then I discovered it was, in fact, using me! At the time, I did not know from wilderness. Stanley Park was wilderness to me. So, it has been a come-to-Jesus thing for me and I am a bit of a proselytizer. Wanna pamphlet?

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