Shooting Stars

Here's another local wildflower that was blooming in the same meadow as pictured yesterday. These are commonly called Shooting Stars, one of many species of Dodecatheon.

Beacon Hill Park

Famous local artist and author Emily Carr wrote about her love for Fawn Lilies and whenever I see these in Beacon Hill Park, I imagine that she must have been thinking of this particular meadow. Indeed, her house is only a few minutes walk from where I took this photo on Tuesday.

Beacon Hill

Around this time of year I like to check on Beacon Hill because its slopes are usually covered with daffodils. We had a beautiful sunny afternoon today and the daffodils didn't disappoint.

Crocus 2

Beacon Hill Park has yellow crocuses as well as mauve.

Crocuses

So I went down to Beacon Hill Park this afternoon to see if there were any crocuses and look what I found.

Priming the Pump!

Well, it wasn't snowing today - but there was lots of damp grey rain so here is another from the archives - this photo was taken in February 2013 in Beacon Hill Park and as soon as the weather permits I'll be down there to see how the crocuses are doing this year. (Does anyone know what "priming the pump" means any more? In this case, I'm hoping I can hurry spring along by posting a photo of some crocuses.)

February Choices!

As I wrote yesterday, "Every year I put together a calendar for friends and family, of photos I have published on this blog for the last year or so. However, it's always difficult to make decisions about which photos to use. I sam hoping visitors to this blog will help out. Every day for the next few weeks I will publish two or three photos from a given month and hope that comments and choices made by visitors will help me make a final decision which photos to use in this year's calendar. As an incentive, I will offer an online downloadable/printable file of the calendar to anyone who helps me make a choice."

Thanks to everyone who gave me their opinions yesterday.

Below are my favorite February 2016 photos: Which one do you prefer?

Flowering Plum

Daffodils on Beacon Hill

View from Swallows' Landing

Holland Point

I posted a photo of Holland Point in Beacon Hill Park a few weeks ago. It's not the first time I posted a photo of that particular spot - it's a favorite landscape of mine and I've posted a picture of it almost every year since the beginning of this blog in 2008. However, despite its unusual name I've never until today wondered how it came to be called Holland Point. A little googling led to a great little site by local historian Janis Ringuette devoted to the history of Beacon Hill Park.In an appendix she gives an extensive history of Holland Point, including how its name was given.

After extensive research, Assistant Provincial Archivist Madge Wolfenden concluded the point was named after George Holland, an undistinguished Hudson’s Bay Company employee. Holland Point was not mentioned on maps or charts before 1848, when Captain Henry Kellett’s chart of Victoria Harbour (#1897) was published. Kellett surveyed the coast in the H.M.S. Herald in 1846. Wolfenden wrote:

A study of Kellett’s charts of Victoria and Esquimalt harbours reveals that a definite plan of naming had been followed, in that the names in and about Victoria distinctly pertain to the Hudson’s Bay Company and that those of Esquimalt derive from Navy personnel. (Madge Wolfenden, “The Naming of Holland Point,” British Columbia Historical Quarterly, Vol. XVIII, Jan.-April, 1954, pp. 118)

George Holland was a seaman on the Beaver’s maiden voyage to the northwest coast in 1833-36. After serving on the Beaver and the Cadboro, he taught school at Fort Vancouver in 1939, was appointed Postmaster at Fort Langley in 1843 and then transferred to Fort Victoria in 1846. He went to London, earned a Master Mariner’s certificate and returned to serve on the Norman Morison under Capt. Wishart. After disagreements with the Captain, Holland quit and nothing further is known about his career. (Wolfenden, pp. 117-121) She found no evidence Holland distinguished himself in any field or any reason his name was selected for the point.

Dr. J. S. Helmcken, who met Holland on the ship Norman Morison, later wrote: “Holland was not much of a sailor or anything else...he and the Captain being so different did not get on well together.” (Helmcken, Reminiscences, Vol II, p. 120)

Though the name of the point is not very exciting, looking for it did lead to the Beacon Hill History site. I spent a happy afternoon browsing there and recommend it highly for anyone interested in the history of this area.

Those Autumn Leaves

NOT a Beach...

...But just about a good as a beach. I always enjoy seeing this giant watering can in Beacon Hill Park. It squirts water from spouts here and there all over it and responds to a number of buttons set at kid height. In the summer there's always a half dozen families with small children running around and squealing as the jets spray on them. The buttons make it squirt but not from any predictable place.

Daffodils

One of the earliest places to look for spring blooms is the south-facing slope of Beacon Hill so I took a spin around there yesterday and was rewarded with these lovely daffodils. Daffodils are not a native species here so next I'll be on the lookout of early blooming local wildflowers.

Rhododendron

Beacon Hill Park has a wide variety of Rhododendrons - there is even one variety that is native to Vancouver Island. I don't know what variety is pictured above but I was happy to see it beginning to bloom the other day.

More Crocuses

On Sunday I posted a photo of a solitary crocus, but just to show you that it was not alone, here is what I came upon shortly after I took Sunday's photo.

Crocus!

So I went down to Beacon Hill Park today to see if I could find anything to photograph and look what turned up. It's a bit early but maybe these crocuses know something we don't. In any case it was a joy to see. Oh, please notice the smooth unfocused background in this photo. That creamy bokeh is thanks to that little lens I mentioned yesterday, the Helios 58mm.

Beacon HIll

I often post photos of Beacon Hill Park and photos taken from Beacon Hill but I don't think I have ever taken a photo of Beacon Hill itself, so here's one. It overlooks the strait and in days gone by it used to have a beacon on top to guide mariners. The purple flowers are Camas Lilies and these camas meadows on the slopes of Beacon Hill were harvested by native peoples long before Europeans ever came to these shores.

Lilies of the Field....

Beacon Hill Park, March 31, 2015.

Old Bandstand

This little building was used for many years as a bandstand for summer concerts in the park. It has been replaced by a larger stage but the original bulding is preserved here near the southern end of the stone bridge. I like this photo because of the hardy rhododendrons blooming though it is nearly mid-winter. I came across some other winter blossoms recently we'll have a look at next week.

Goodacre Lake 4 - Dabblers

Goodacre Lake has a large resident population of dabbling ducks, mostly American Widgeons and Mallards. Many people like to visit the park and feed the ducks, a popular activity with kids, The ducks like it too.

Goodacre Lake 3 - McTavish Island

There are a couple of small islands in Goodacre Lake - above is the most prominent, McTavish Island, viewed from the stone bridge in yesterday's photo.

Goodacre Lake 2

Here's another view of the stone bridge seen in yesterday's photo. Although the park was not so crowded as it can get during the summer there were still a fair number of Victorians out to enjoy the winter sunshine.