THE RHODODENDRON RAVINE IS OPEN ONCE AGAIN!
Years of planning, studying, and fundraising has all been worth the effort. Visitors to Dominion Brook Park now have a new area in the park to enjoy. On September 30, 2017, the Rhododendron Ravine was officially opened to the public with about 70 invited guests and local residents in attendance.
Work on the ravine restoration has been going on for several years, with progress made as funds became available. The push to complete it in 2017 was motivated by Canada’s sesquicentennial. The Board of Directors wanted the ravine restoration to be a Canada 150 project and pursued various funding opportunities, with success.
The Greater Victoria Saving Credit Union Legacy Fund and the Toronto Dominion Friends of the Environment Fund each gave the Society a grant of $10,000. The North Saanich approved $50,000 for the project. Donations from Society members made up the balance of what we needed. Peninsula Rock Products and Brackenhurst Farms Ltd. donated rock and gravel.
Murray Benson was the contractor who did the work. His company’s experience working in waterways shows in every aspect of their approach to the job. The care, skill, and artistry are evident. Cliff Halliday, with the District of North Saanich, was the project manager on-site and can be credited with the whole effort running smoothly.
Our sincere thanks go out to these organizations, businesses, and individuals who made the realization of this project possible.
Now the stream bed is restored, the slopes are stabilized, and a trail loop winds its way through the ravine. The upper brook crossing provides a viewpoint of the seasonal waterfall.
But the work does not stop there. We have opened a whole new area for our volunteers to plant and maintain. The next project is to re-establish the collection of rhododendrons and companion plantings in the Ravine.
Come and walk our new trail, and pause for a moment at the stream crossing to enjoy the water cascading over the rocks. It is a good place for quiet reflection and to appreciate this gem of a Park that we have in our community.
