My City, my River Valley. #YegRiVal - 2016

My City, my River Valley. #YegRiVal - 2016

Long time ago I posted on this blog that Jola and I will try to walk the whole Edmonton River Valley and adjoining ravines before the end of the year 2016. We are in a year 2020. This is what happened and how it happened.

GPS tracking of over 50 hikes between Fall 2015 and Spring, 2017

• 19/09/2015 Mill Creak Ravine to North Saskatchewan River

Two pictures taken during our first walk.

• 03/10/2015 Hermitage Park

Hermitage Park from high river bank

One of many bridges encountered. The monument (Pillar of Love) was built to commemorate Black Friday July 31, 1987 tornado victims.

• 10/10/2015 Following Whitemud Creak to Snow Valley (Whitemud Park) 

                                    

Fall is moving in slowly, with the colours and smell of leaves in the air.

• 17/10/2015 Whitemud Equine to The End of The World (Edmonton Version)  

                                   

Colours, colours and more colours. 

Climbing to The End of The World was lots of fun. Well... maybe we did it, maybe we didn’t, as it was a restricted area and prohibited to enter. 

Today it has safe viewing platform.

• 31/10/2015 Rundle Park

 

Two ends of the park between Yellowhead Trail and Ainsworth Dyer Bridge. Cpl. Ainsworth Dyer was one of the first of 158 Canadian casualties in Afghanistan.

• 11/11/2015 Remembers Day 2015

Downtown visible from under the James McDonald Bridge 

   

Changes are coming, with new bridge coming soon. Old Telus Field is still used for baseball. Bridge is open now.

Downtown area of the River Valley

• 12/12/2015 Gold Bar Area

Mixture of nature and city living

Industrial area of Sherwood Park and one of the bridges

• 03/01/2016 Fort Edmonton Foot Bridge and Quesnell Bridge

North Saskatchewan frozen solid. And silver balls shining by the Quesnell Bridge

                                     

Stairs, stairs and more stairs and bridges - feels like the West Coast Trail. 

 But it is Christmas Time, people decorating trails

• 09/01/2016 Walterdale Bridge to Royal Glenora Club (-30C) 

Cold, cold, cold!

After 20 min, phone just went into deep freeze mode

• 23/01/2016 Buena Vista off leash park 

    

Walk with a dog can be lots of fun

• 31/01/2016 U of Alberta Campus and U of A Hospital

Not all back alleys look pretty. UofA Hospital when visiting a friend.

     

New Train at the UofA LRT station. One more visit at the End of the World. Maybe it happened, maybe it didn't. A picture tells a thousand words.

• 06/02/2016 Mill Creak Ravine again - Flying Canoë Volant in Mill Creek Ravine

  

Flying Canoë Volant in Mill Creek Ravine is always fun, beautiful decorations and music and stories.

• 15/02/2016 William Hawrelak Park and MacKinnon Ravine Loop

Lots of people on the trails, and there is always time for your own snowperson

Stretching on the long walk

• 20/02/2016 LRT Bridge to Groat Bridge

New Bridge is coming, High Level upgraded with suicide prevention features.

Our parks are the best. Summer and/or Winter 

• 05/03/2016 Snow Valley south to Riverbend

 

Birds feeding brings back childhood memories  

• 16/04/2016 Highlands area - East of Capilano Bridge

   

Peace and quiet, just minutes from Wayne Gretzky Drive

     

Back to the North Side, Capilano Bridge area has its own beauty. 

• 30/04/2016 Whitemud Road (in fact bushwhacking along the river)

No trails around the banks by Whitemud Road, Still this is not a show stopper.

  

When "Danger" sign meant stop? As we are coming up from the ravine

• 21 and 22/05/2016 Country Club and Donsdale Estates area

Golf Courses are not a hiking grounds, but again who is going to stop us?



Country Club has little vegetable garden, good for quality food



For sure we will not stop for rain. Wet in Alberta is good

  

I hope my camera stays dry

• 23/05/2016 Lorie Park to Whitemud Drive and neighberhood

Another spring day. Green is coming to Edmonton

• 28/05/2016 Donsdale to Windermere (Henday Bridge) (bushwhacking again) 

Bushwhacking to the bridge. We got lucky to wrap up just before the storm 

• 11/06/2016 Terwillegar off leash Park 

It was quite wet spring of 2016 in Edmonton

• 25/06/2016 Terwillegar off leash Park to Windermere (Henday Bridge) 

With everything green, it is so nice in the valley

• 15/07/2016 Whitemud Ravine to Mactaggart Sanctuary (23 Ave) 

 

Spring rains helped with the Saskatoon Berry crop - so yummy.

• 02/10/2016 Dawson Park to Capilano Bridge (Whayne Gretzky Drive) 

 

Summer went fast, now colorful fall is coming
 

Colours in the valley are beautiful. Emergency phone OUT OF ORDER gives some comfort (..?)

• 10/10/2016 Riverdale and Cloverdale 

 

It sure gets gold fast in our city 

Must have a Buffalo in the City of the Prairies. Statue at Shaw Conference Centre

• 11/11/2016 Fort Edmonton Foot Bridge to Terwillegar Foot Bridge 

Back to the West End, a little park destroyed by fire. It’s good to have new pedestrian bridge.

• 27/12/2016 Fort Edmonton Foot Bridge to Terwillegar Foot Bridge - full circle 

sadsa

 

Even winter is full of colours on a sunny day.

• 31/12/2016 Hermitage Park North to Anthony Henday Bridge 

North End by Anthony Henday. Another cold day of 2016 (Dec 31).

I still feel exhausted just to think about the miles we managed to travel. Yet blank spots give us a chance to keep on going. This is My City, my River Valley. #YegRiVal has so much to offer. See you on the trail.