https://myalbum.com/embed/Ru9ETeR13VTy
As soon as you step on to the board walk around Somenos Marsh and Lake their is a sort of peacefulness that sets over you. There are many signs at the head of the trails illustrating what the Somenos Conservation Group is doing to help conserve the environment and all of the organisms that live in the area. Throughout the walk around the conservation area you will notice many different signs showing what animals live there. Each sign in complete with its own depiction of some facts about the animals. The way I see this conservation area is dedicated to making sure that everyone who visits the area is aware of its history with indigenous people. In some of the signs heading the trails, there is text written about how the "First People" came to the Somenos land and how they treated it with such respect. After reading the about how much respect went into the land it heightens your want to treat the land with that same respect. Another aspect of the conservation sight that I feel is important is under each of the signs that tells visitors about the various animals, there is the name of the animal in an indigenous language. This brings a great learning into the experience of visiting the marsh. With each signs you visit and read about a certain animal you learn how to say the animals name in the native language of the Cowichan people.
We explored Genoa Bay, The Cowichan River and Maple Bay!
Arrington and Georgette he knowledge and stories behind these landmarks tells me that back when all the land in and around our property lines were getting developed a part of the development was logging, as people were moving in they need places to build their homes and roads to get to all sides of their properties. So, bridges, roads, houses, and sheds were built all through the forest that make up all the land out here. Some of the old rotting sheds that I came across on my explorations were actually pump houses, my grandfather was able to tell me about how there are dozens of underground rivers and waterways that have supplied people in our farming neighborhoods water for decades and that our current house is on a new pump that my step-father built this past spring. He also told me that while our water does get treatment it gets very little as the water here is so pure that it doesn’t need that much, the water is also filled with minerals that water in town wouldn’t have as the treatment processes remove some of the minerals. Back in the 70’s and 80’s when the land was getting developed a lot of people with families came out here at first for varying reasons, as the years went by many of the families stayed and their children’s children now are growing up in those houses and others left a few years after they arrived. I’ve always been warned about wandering too far into the forests around my house as there are a few houses that are still falling apart in the forests. On Vancouver Island, a lot of our natural areas and resources are well preserved. For this, we are very lucky. The Somenos estuary in Duncan is a perfect example of the Island philosophy of wildlife protection. The citizens of Lake Cowichan do our best to maintain the natural beauty of the lake and river while, at the same time, respectfully using it for our own benefit. Without the summer tourism, many LC business would not survive the year. It is hard to balance the preservation and exploitation of our natural resources, but we take action towards a healthy middle ground with both the weir and the saywell public dock.
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