Southward

Probably the main cycle trail on Southern Vancouver Island is the Galloping Goose (named after the rail line it follows through much of its length). It crosses the Gorge (an inland arm of the Harbour) over an old re-purposed train trestle, from the centre of which the above view of the city invites contemplation. That's the Bay Street (or Point Ellice) Bridge in the foreground and (if you've got sharp eyes or click the photo to enlarge it) you can see the Johnson Street Bridge further back. The latter is open to allow some marine traffic to pass.

Canada Day on the Gorge

Usually I spend Canada Day out in one of our nearby wilderness areas because, much as I like my fellow Canadians, I don't enjoy the huge crowds that assemble on our national holiday. However, this year I decided to try and taste a more neighborhoody celebration and went over to the Gorge where Gorge Road was blocked to traffic for much of its length and turned into a large block party. There were sauntering groups of families and friends, displays of various kinds, including classic cars such as this Chevrolet Corvette, lots of food vans, and driveway bands providing music. I particularly enjoyed this 1960 Corvette because of its Canada Day red and white colors but also for its splendid classic style. This car looks as good now as when it was produced, a work of art.

Sequoias in Victoria

The natural range of the species Sequoia sempervirens (Giant Redwood) doesn't extend beyond southern Oregon but a number of these glorious trees have been planted in Victoria and seem to be thriving. Above is one that is located on Gorge Road. There are others - one on Moss Street, another in front of the Legislature, several in Beacon Hill Park and one on the grounds of Hatley Castle. I suspect there are others. Several more are noted on Ross Crockford's fascinating blog, Unknown Victoria. This tree species includes the tallest trees on earth and they live for very long periods of time (1,200 to 1,800 years). I stopped to photograph this one because I was attracted to its near-perfect symmetry.

Boat

I've been thinking about why I like this photo and also why I derived such pleasure out of the Wood Ducks I've been posting photos of the last few days. I think it's an effect of seasonal affective disorder. Around this time of year, especially after a succession of short gloomy gray days, anything that bears the bold brilliant colors of warmer seasons is refreshing to the eyes and to the mind. The Wood Ducks and this small boat have this in common and remind me that we are now on the downhill slope towards spring. This little boat was moored yesterday below the Selkirk Trestle in Vic West and I thank its owner for these rich colors.

More Night Lights

We're getting more night shots lately partly because there's more night lately but mainly because I am getting addicted to the Sony Alpha 55's wonderful handheld twilight setting. It's really liberating to be able to walk around in the darkness and shoot photos just like it was daytime. Above is a shot taken from the Bay Street (Point Ellice) Bridge looking down the Gorge towards the city. That's the Galloping Goose Regional Trail for cyclists and pedestrians with the nice yellow line down the middle. It's nearly deserted at night but in the morning it carries many walkers and commuters on two wheels.

Boats in the Snow

Yesterday's big snowfall (about 6 or 8 inches) transformed our landscape from early spring back to early winter. I walked down to Banfield Park in Victoria West, overlooking the Gorge. The photo above is of the Gorge looking downstream towards the Inner Harbour. That's the Selkirk Trestle (part of the Galloping Goose Regional Trail) in the distance.

Admirals Bridge

A few days ago I posted a photo of Tillicum Bridge, the fourth bridge to cross the Gorge. Moving upstream westward the next and final bridge is the Admirals Bridge or Admirals Road Bridge. Some time ago I posted a photo taken from this bridge but have not before posted a photo of the bridge itself. VirtualVacationGuide.com has posted a nice 360 degree panorama of this bridge that you can see by clicking HERE. The bridge connects two of Victoria's most significant historical sites, Craigflower Manor and Craigflower School. The school is the white building visible through the trees on the far left of the above photo. Craigflower Manor was directly behind the photographer in the above photo. Both of these sites have been featured extensively on this blog in the past.

Tillicum Bridge

Last month I posted some photos of the Bay Street Bridge, noting that it was the second bridge to cross The Gorge when moving away from the harbor. The next bridge is the Selkirk Trestle, used exclusively by cyclists and pedestrians. The next bridge for automotive traffic is the Tillicum Bridge which crosses the Gorge at a very narrow place called Reversing Falls because of the vigorous tidal currents that change directions there according to the ebb and rise of the tides. In this photo the water is still at nearly high tide. Beneath the bridge on the right is an ancient shell midden.

Bay Street Bridge III

From beneath the Bay Street Bridge the view above is looking north and slightly west up the Gorge towards the Selkirk Waters. The house on the opposite shore that is visible through the trees is Point Ellice House. The photo on the right is the view looking in the opposite direction, down the Gorge towards the city. On the left is LaFarge Cement and Butler's Concrete. The large blue building is a thrift store called Valu Village.

Selkirk Trestle Sunrise

Residents of Victoria West, like myself, are lucky in that we have access to waterfront both to the north (The Gorge) and to the south (the Inner Harbour). Where I live is about equidistant from the two bodies of water. Usually I have been walking down to the Inner Harbor and along the Westsong Walkway since this offers more expansive views across the Strait of Juan de Fuca to the mountains of Olympic Peninsula. There is often a cruise ship or the Coho car ferry visible as well, while the Gorge is a little more domestic with lots of kayaks and canoes and our local rather diminutive mountains. However, the other morning before sunrise I went down to the Gorge and was pleasantly surprised to find that dawn is like the philosopher's stone that turns everything to gold. There's lots of beauty and interest in the Gorge's smaller scale. The above photo of Selkirk Trestle is nearly a reprise of one I took almost two years ago. This is where the Galloping Goose Regional Trail crosses the Gorge over what used to be a railroad trestle. The Galloping Goose Regional Trail is for pedestrians and cyclists only and is used extensively by a growing number of commuters who prefer to walk, run or ride on two wheels.

Upper Gorge - Craigflower Manor and School

This photo is meant to serve as an introduction to the next few days' posts. Here we are looking up the Gorge from the Craigflower Bridge. To the left just out of the frame is Craigflower Manor, one of the earliest extant colonial houses in British Columbia, built in 1856. Off camera to the right and behind me is Craigflower School, the oldest schoolhouse in western Canada (1855). Together they constitute a National as well as a Provincial Historical Site. During my visit I was fortunate to encounter a guide both informed and patient who took me inside both of these old buildings and gave me some insight into their history. Thank you, Cailin Glenn, for the great tour. Between them, these two buildings provide a wonderfully evocative snapshot of life in Victoria's earliest days and tomorrow we'll have a look at them as well as what's behind their doors.

Parrot

Actually I know this is not a parrot. But I've just spent an hour searching through my Peterson's Field Guide to Western Birds without finding anything that really matches this fellow. The sun came out for awhile yesterday and while I was wandering around above the Gorge, he (or she) came and struck this lovely pose. So I've titled this post "parrot" in the hopes that some irate birder will click through and inform me what kind of bird this is.

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Bravo to reader Marnie, Ms. Toast Burner, who blogs over at "One Slice at a Time." She identifies this as a male House Finch (Carpodacus mexicanus), a member of the rosefinch genus. Wikipedia has a good picture of this bird that leaves little doubt she is correct. Thank you Marnie!

Sunset on the Gorge

The Gorge is a splendid feature of Victoria and is well used by residents who like to be on the water. This is a fairly typical scene in the late afternoon as rowers and boaters head for home under some very photogenic clouds. This photo was taken from Selkirk Trestle, looking towards the city. The island on the left, Halkett Island, was featured in an earlier post.

Autumn Sunset

Though it has yet to freeze here the nights are cold enough to turn the leaves on these trees on the banks of the Gorge. Here we are looking towards downtown from the vicinity of the Railyards in Vic West. The nearest bridge is the Bay Street (or Point Ellice) Bridge and just visible beneath it in the distance is the bright blue Johnson Street Bridge.

Industrial

Here's another panorama stitched from two photos taken from Bayview Residences. Yesterday's pano was the view facing eastwards across the downtown and tourist section of the city. Now we are facing northeast. The blue bridge on the right of this photo, the Johnson Street Bridge, marks the division between the lower/inner harbour and the upper harbour, pictured above. This view of Victoria encompasses most of the industrial area of the city. The Gorge waterway stretches away to the left into residential neighbourhoods.

Selkirk Waters

This view is from the eastern bank of the Gorge looking towards the city and the Inner Harbour. Beyond the Bay Street or Point Ellice Bridge can be seen the condo development known as Dockside Green. The brightly colored condos on the right are called the Railyards.

Today is the annual national holiday of our southern neighbors in the United States of America and I send them my best wishes for a happy holiday.

Vic West Fest - May, 2009

A visitor commented yesterday that all that was missing from Saturday's photo was some of Victoria's friendly people so here's a sample from our amiable Victoria West community enjoying a musical performance at the Vic West Fest at Banfield Park on Saturday. The enthusiastic youngster above is applauding the performance of the Balkan Babes. We are fortunate to hear their award-winning a cappella renditions of Balkan folk songs at many Vic West events. They were featured in an earlier post on this blog and you can hear some of their powerful and affecting music on their MySpace page, http://www.myspace.com/balkanbabes. In the photo below they are performing just in front of the slides and swings of the Banfield Park playground. That's the Gorge just visible through the trees in the background.

Halkett Island

This small rocky island lies in the middle of the Gorge just east of the Selkirk Trestle (to the right in the photo). It was originally a burial island and marked the boundary between two family groups of the Lekwungen, now known as the Songhees and the Esquimalt First Nations.

In 1850, the "Island of the Dead" contained subsurface burials, but was mostly covered with small sheds, burial boxes and canoes containing human remains. The deceased were often placed in a fetal position and wrapped in a cedar bark mat. Adults were placed in a European-made, metal trimmed trunk and children were often placed in wooden cracker boxes.

Life sized carved wooden memorial figures representing prominent individuals were a common feature of burial locations.

The Lekwungen people, from the old Songhees reserve across the water, came to the island at twilight for feeding of the dead ceremonies. Sticks with chunks of sap were thrown into a fire to keep it blazing until midnight. Ritual words and chanting proceeded, as food to feed the dead was thrown into the fire.

Burials were no longer placed here after 1867, when a fire set by three Victoria boys got out of control and burned off the island. The boys' parents were heavily fined under the Indian Graves Protection Act. The island was taken away from the Songhees in 1924 by a Federal Indian Reserve Commission, but was restored to them by court order in 1993.

Joseph Pemberton, Victoria's most prolific early map maker, gave the name Halkett to the island in 1851. The Halketts were a well known, prominent British Navy family at the time.

(From a plaque placed on the shoreline near Halkett Island by the City of Victoria)

Craigflower Manor

Photos: Above, Craigflower Manor. Below, Craigflower Manor on the left, Craigflower Bridge in the centre, Craigflower School on the right. Bottom photo: Manor house rear porch window.

Craigflower Farm was established on land purchased in 1850 from the chiefs of the Kosapsom people, who had lived in the area for millennia. Throughout the farm’s existence, the Kosapsom continued to live on adjacent land, and many became involved in the farm operations, being employed in land clearing, construction, housekeeping and other duties.

The farm was one of four original farms set up by the Hudson’s Bay Company as part of their obligations in settling Vancouver Island. The farms were managed by a subsidiary company, the Puget Sound Agricultural Company, with the expectation that they would not only meet their colonizing objectives, but would also reap a profit from the sale of livestock and produce.

In 1853, Kenneth McKenzie and his family along with 18 farm hands and their families arrived in Victoria aboard the "Norman Morison", following a strenuous six month journey around Cape Horn. They soon took up residence on the farm site, and began clearing land and building accommodations. McKenzie oversaw the construction of the farmhouse, which was modeled after his ancestral home in Scotland. On May 1st, 1856, the McKenzie family moved in.

During the 1850s and 1860s the farm site continued to grow and develop. The school was opened in 1855 with 26 students. The first teacher, Charles Clark lived upstairs in the schoolhouse with his family and a number of children from outlying areas who boarded with them.

At that time, there were 20 other dwellings on site, as well as a saw mill, a flour mill, a blacksmith’s shop, a brick kiln, slaughterhouse and a general store. Seventy-six people lived at the farm during this period, but many of the original farmhands chose not to renew their contracts after 1857. The McKenzie family stayed on at Craigflower until 1866, at which time they moved on to their own sheep farm.

The farmhouse was subsequently rented to a series of tenants, but the farm itself did not succeed. The school was closed in 1911, and was subsequently re-opened as a museum in 1931. Eventually acquired by the Province of BC for protection as historic sites, the farmhouse and schoolhouse were declared National Historic Sites in 1967. (From The Land Conservancy Website.)

There is also an excellent description and backgrounder by Maureen Duffus HERE and anaother great source of information from BC Heritage HERE.

Craigflower School

The Craigflower Schoolhouse (originally called Maple Point School), the oldest surviving school building in Western Canada, was built on orders from Kenneth MacKenzie. He came from Scotland with his family in 1852 to establish a farm for the Puget Sound Agricultural Company, a subsidiary of the Hudson's Bay Company.

A school was needed for the children of farm employees, as well as those of arriving settlers. The school was started to be built on August 21, 1854 and was completed February 23, 1855. Lumber and foundation bricks were produced at Craigflower Farm across the Gorge. Glass, hardware, and large bricks were imported from England. Total cost was about $4300.

The two-storey building had one schoolroom, and six rooms for the teacher, his family and student boarders from the western communities. The school opened in March, 1855. That same week a ship's bell from the steamer Major Tompkins, that wrecked off Macaulay Point, was hung in the yard. The first Craigflower bridge was built the next winter linking the school to the Craigflower settlement. The building became a focal point for social and religious events. It was used as a school until 1911, when the new Craigflower School was built across the road (superceded by a third building in 1964).

The old school was vacant until it was converted to a museum which the Native Sons and Daughters of British Columbia ran from 1931 until 1975. The provincial Historic Parks and Sites Branch then acquired the property, restored it and reopened it as a museum too.

This simple structure is side-gabled and has brick chimneys both ends. There is a large fireplace in the schoolroom and another in the teacher's quarters. The fourteen-inch-thick walls are composed of sawn clapboard siding applied to diagonal sheathing over standard Hudson's Bay Company log construction. Hewn horizontal logs were slid down from the top between vertical uprights, the joists hewn and sawn, and the roof timbers sawn. The building was set on a concrete foundation in 1929. (From http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WM2YHA)

Tomorrow we'll have a closer look at the schoolhouse and at nearby Craigflower Manor, home to many of the children who attended this school.