Working and Enjoying

I have been busy. I love being busy. Especially being retired and doing the things I want to do.

I went out to Turkey Mountain and checked out the new board walk they installed over the western rock faces of the mountain. This is an area called Rock City and I love how they put the walk right in and over the boulders using cedar that was cut on the mountain.

It is a small network of new trails interconnecting with two trails, one on top of the rock faces and one below. I bet it would be fun on a bicycle. It looks like they put a mesh on top of the cedar to add a little traction for the bikes. You slip off the wood on a bike it would ruin your whole day. Me and gravity are not friends these days so I will never take my bike across this.

I ventured back to the parking lot on the Tiger Muffin trail. It’s the trail name for a friend of mine.

Last Saturday I put my cold weather gear on and joined a bunch of people from the Tulsa Urban Wilderness Coalition and Bike Club to clean up a trail called Mooser Creek Greenway. It had a lot of tree falls from Tulsa’s Father’s Day windstorm last year. The trails were cleared back then but a lot of the downed were a little unsightly. Plus there is a never ending chore of repairing erosion and wet spots on trails.

So I helped clear the limbs and trunks that were being cut up by people with chain saws.

I love the trail work days. Tulsa really responds to stuff like that and all sorts of people show up to help. I got a promotion with the Wilderness Coalition. I am now the Vice President of Government Affairs. My trail job didn’t change much. Moving limbs and cut up trunks off the trail is what I do along with whatever else needs doing.

Later that day Heather and I went out to the Tulsa Botanic Garden to check out the flowers and new projects.

They have added an event space in the middle of the pond. They are also converting some wild land they had into an arboretum. They have done a good job adding onto the gardens and it is getting more and more settled as time goes on.

The tulips put on a quite a show. Last year when we went some deer had gone into the gardens ate a bunch of the tulips and other plants.

They also had Lego animals scattered around the garden. I love this woodpecker.

And I always love redbuds. The Eastern Redbud is the State Tree of Oklahoma.

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The Daffodils were putting on a show even though their time is short.

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This was my favorite tulip. It looked black in the sun but is actually a deep purple. This one is the only one I spotted.

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And to end up, we had an almost full moon the other day. I captured the image in the late afternoon so it was almost a daytime moon. I love the moon in all its presentations but I especially love a good daytime moon.

So what have you been up to?

I am linking with Skywatch Friday and My Corner of the World.

22 thoughts on “Working and Enjoying

  1. Amy

    It’s nice to see so many people working together to clean up the fallen trees, makes it just so much nicer to visit.

  2. A ShutterBug Explores

    Wow! Great post and photos with fun activities abounding ~ Boardwalk is awesome ~ love the lego woodpecker and great photo of ‘Heather’ ~ hugs to all,

    Wishing you good health, laughter and love in your days,
    A ShutterBug Explores,
    aka (A Creative Harbor)
    carol l mckenna

  3. Pat

    My neighborhood has 45 miles of private resident trails and there is also a volunteer Trail Club. They help maintain the trails, and do noxious weeds weeding, and so on. We also have rangers that manage the trails and any wildlife issues. It’s nice to see everyone chip in to help! Today was “slash” day and any resident that had downed tree limbs from our recent storm of two feet of snow could bring the limbs to a pocket park where there was a wood chipper crew.

    Your botanical garden looks beautiful with all those spring bulbs in bloom!

  4. Lisa

    I was wondering what the mesh was for, looking at the first photo. Good reason, but it sure takes away the looks of it for me!

  5. Eileen

    Hello,
    It is great for you and to have a whole crew of people volunteering to clear the trails.
    The new boardwalk looks nice. Lovely views of the garden and pond. I like the Lego sculpture.
    Happy Easter to you and your family! Take care, enjoy your day and have a happy weekend.

  6. Alana

    I love your botanical garden and Lego Woodie. Beautiful blooms, and so nice to see all the volunteers at work on the trails. Let me give you a loud “Thank You”!

  7. Peter B.

    The wooden walkway looks like a very creative design. Glad you are staying busy in your retirement. You appear to be really enjoying it, which is awesome! I think having a lot of hobbies is one of the keys to a fun retirement.

  8. Masha

    What a cool woodpecker! And such a lot of flowers – wish, we had a botanical garden nearby.
    I am also familiar with such work in the free nature by the Nature Conservation Association, it’s always a good thing. Today I can no more participate, sigh!
    Happy Easter to you and yours 🙂

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