Road Trip #4: Beauty and the Barbed Wire Fence

Although I taught out in Richmond for thirteen or so years and frequently drove or cycled by the airport on my commute, I never took the detour to Iona Beach Regional Park, northwest of YVR. I'd heard that the marshlands and birdlife out there were stunning and that the jetty projecting into the Strait of Georgia from the mouth of the Fraser was a lovely 4km walk (one way!) ... but it wasn't until I read "Tribute to Iona Island," a poem by my friend and colleague John Webb that I really wanted to visit the place.

It still took me another few years, a dog with boundless energy, and a loaner car from my parents to get there, but yesterday morning Freddie and I did it! Come along with us on this photo recap ... but before you do that, have a read of John's stunning poem, which first appeared in the journal Queen's Quarterly and can be found HERE. There are close connections between the poem and some of the photos.

 

The Jetty 

(off-leash to the left, on-leash to the right)

At Sea

Freddie loved this place.

(I think he covered at least 10km, running ahead and back.)

 Wind shelter on the jetty (not needed today).

The top of the city skyline is just visible above the trees.

Thick Tidal Mud

(description pilfered from John's poem)

Spot the control tower in the distance.

Marsh Hawk (maybe)

Slow Ascent

Almost There

The End of the Jetty

These red-winged birds were very frisky this morning!

Spot the airplane ...

Closer View of the Control Tower

Closer View of the Frisky Bird

Cotton Candy Sky

Anyone been to the original Iona Island, off the west coast of Scotland?

Pas moi! (But I'd like to ...)