Our Trout Lake

Most people who live in the city and want to go to the lake have to take time off work, or plan it for a weekend, load up the car, drive where ever, unload the car, spend the day then either drive home or stay overnight. Not me.

I walk a half hour along Victoria Drive and when just south east of East 12th Street, I am on the shores of Trout Lake. In the 1800s this body of water was a peat bog that supplied water to the Hastings Sawmill, owned by John Hendry. (It is or maybe was stocked with Rainbow and Cutthroat Trout hence the name.) During the time the mill was operating a flume was built to run the water from the blog to the mill. A person had to be hired full time to prevent the beavers from building dams that blocked the flow and to remove the trout that would occassionally clog the flume.

In 1926 John Hendry's daughter, Mrs. Eric Hamber, donated the land to the Park Board on the grounds that it would used as a park named after her father. That is how one of Vancouver's first lumbering operations became a place of beauty and relaxation.

Today it is a popular swimming area and nesting spot for a variety of birds.It is also a great place to take your dog.

Personally I enjoy walking around the lake and veering off along one of the short pier like structures.

It is a big area -27.4 hectares- with more than just the lake and beach.

There is a picnic area, outdoor showers, a concession booth and of course lots of people.

This is Bud the Oracle and I will be writing more on him in another post. I ran into him today and he graciously allowed me to take pictures of him and his hat while he recorded me for a youtube feature he is doing. An interesting man to be sure.

All in all it was a great day. I got to go to the lake, pet a few dogs, talk to numerous people and take some great pictures.

Here's to finding the beauty around you.

TAGS:Vancouver, Karen Magill, Hastings Sawmill,
John Hendry,Bud the Oracle,Mrs. Eric Hamber,Walk,Trout Lake,