Just a few blocks from where I live, the students of a small elementary school called Dr. E.W. Coffin have adopted a park called Whispering Woods. What makes Whispering Woods so special is that it is an outdoor learning facility, directly tied in to the students’ classroom curriculum. Through interpretive signs and nature walks (there’s even a seating area built for lectures), the children learn science and language skills, and explore concepts such as the stewardship of nature and the interconnectivity of ecosystems.
Whispering Woods is a small gully filled with aspen trees and native prairie grasses, a piece of land calved off of nearby Nose Hill (which you’ll recognize from my many mentions on this blog). The area was long ago isolated by the construction of a major road and it is surrounded by houses, the school, and a baseball diamond. Yet, when you get right down into the heart of this tiny copse of trees, you can actually forget about the rest of the city – you can’t see the buildings or fences, and the noise of the traffic seems to completely disappear.
I love heading over to Whispering Woods in late June, when the wild roses are still blooming – you can find a ton of them there. Apparently, it’s also a good location to spot crocuses, so I’ll have to make a trip in early April to see for myself. I took a walk into the woods early this morning, when everything was quiet (extra-nice-quiet due to the Family Day holiday here in Alberta). It was a chilly, grey morning and the only sounds were a couple of magpies chattering softly at each other in the trees (I think they were half-asleep) and the sizzling of the nearby power lines in the cold humid air. So beautiful!
Entrance sign (John Laurie Boulevard side, southwest of Nose Hill).
The interpretive signs incorporate the letters of the alphabet.
I’m thinking these belonged to a magpie….
And here I thought I was alone! 🙂
Where are your favourite places to go walking?
Find out more about Whispering Woods at NatureGround.
Flowery Prose. 