We have been having the best weather lately. Cool mornings and nights, hot afternoons, sunny and cloudless skies, and gentle breezes promise autumn. Yesterday was another such day, and I volunteered with the Streamkeepers group at the Riverview Tree Festival. The Maple Creek Streamkeepers are one of the partners of Treefest and are in the garden area each year serving blackberry tea and cake. One of the women in the group brought buckets of wildflowers to put on tables, and we had several flautists and a pair of guitarists performing under a simple pavilion.
The day seemed magical, old, and celebratory and I felt transformed out of the normal every day. Though my run later was sweaty, due to the sun, the garden area I was in during the day was shaded and cool and breezy.
People who come to the tree fest each year care about the mature trees at Riverview, which is the site of mental hospital buildings–some no longer used except for perhaps filming scary movies. In December came a new plan to revamp the health facilities in the area, but, with little transparency, and with uncertainty that the historical trees and open park spaces may not be preserved, many environmental groups are worried.
The festival, which happens each year, has bus and walking tours to view the mature and diverse trees. I didn’t go on a tour, since I was volunteering, but did run home, and most of it was through the trails.