Eugene Park Tour: Junction City Pond and Archery Park

Dale and I took a sunset ride to a small town just north of where we live in west Eugene. We'd driven by this pond many times, so figured it was time to see what Junction City has to offer.

What a lovely site!

It's clean and well-kept. There's a dock that is specifically built for wheelchair-bound fishermen. There's a surprisingly large parking lot for such a little place, and a gravel walkway around the pond.

There were several residents fishing when we were there. Such a serene spot.

A couple well-behaved chubby birds kept us company.

At the far end of the pond is a beautiful archery range. 

There was only one young gal practicing with her compound bow that evening. She was fun to watch.

At the shooting end of the range is a long arbor with many picnic tables. This makes for a relaxing way to watch the archers, have a snack, or watch the sunset.

Dale loved archery as a young man. Perhaps he'll take it up again now that an outdoor range is nearby.

#tuesdaytravels

Throwback Thursday: Seed Pods and Weeds

Wonderful shapes. Beauty in everything.

2008

2013

2015

2016

2017

2019

2021

#throwbackthursday

Late Bloomers

Most of the sunflowers I see on my morning walks are starting to droop over the tops of my neighbor's fences. They've had their glory days, and are about ready to give up their seeds. 

Me? I got a late start. Mine were seedlings in the window sill when my neighbor's sunflowers were already shoulder height. I planted mine outside in mid-August and have been babying them every day.

But look!

Four of them have come into flower.

Several have a first bud forming. Two of them have a second bud forming.

Next year ... next year I'll know to get an earlier start. I'm darn proud of this year's efforts, though.

By Jupiter!

Or is that, "Why, hello, Jupiter!"

The planet Jupiter is the closest it's been to the earth in 59 years. So for the first time since we moved to Oregon (coming up on three years), Dale set up his telescope to have a look-see. He invited Jodie over so they could have some one-on-one stargazing. 

He attached his phone to the telescope to get this snapshot:

That's Jupiter with three of its moons, Ganymede, Europa, and Callisto.

I love it when Dale's had some time with the stars. It expands his mind and gets him excited about all the possibilities and all that hope that getting huge distance vision has to offer. 

I see it as his version of spirituality ... the wonder of science!

A Poke and Some Puzzles

Friday evening, Dale and I received our Covid Omicron booster shots. On Saturday, my arm was sore, I was slow to get out of bed, my temperature had risen a bit, and I was feeling schlumpy. (That's a word, right?) So I took to putting a jigsaw puzzle together and binge-watching a Netflix series.

I chose this Love puzzle because ... I thought it would be easy? Uh, no. I suppose my brain was a little foggy. At one point I had to have Dale come in to help me. Often, getting a new pair of eyes on a puzzle makes it much easier.

Love is the first of two small puzzles in a box.

I felt much better on Sunday and put the second puzzle together while watching more of the series.

This one is called Hearts Assorted Chocolate Box. That's a mash-up of words that don't seem to be in quite the right order, but it gets the idea across.

The box of chocolates was simpler than the first puzzle, with just the right amount of challenge for a Sunday afternoon. 

I could do with a month of Sundays like this. Retirement rocks!

Eugene Park Tour: Owen Rose Garden

Of all the parks in Eugene that we've visited so far, this is my favorite. We barely skimmed the surface when we were at Owen Rose Garden at the start of this month. 

Directly off the parking lot is this large arbor that gives great shade for a picnic lunch.

The arbor open out onto a large grass field

surrounded by a paved walking path

that is lined by beds and beds of roses.

The Rose Garden sits beside the long bike path which follows the Willamette River for miles and miles.

The walkway leads to this beautiful pavilion. This would be a gorgeous setting for a wedding.

The trellises that cover each post and over each transom are covered in climbing roses.

Even the bathrooms are pretty here. This is part a a newly-painted mural on the bathroom wall.

I look forward to returning often. Next time I'll take my "big girl camera" with the macro lens. The park has got to be mind-blowing in the Spring!

#tuesdaytravels

The Pumpkin Patch Revisited

I'm so tickled that my little pumpkins are growing. I've got about a dozen now in (I think) three varieties. They are adorable! 

This is the biggest one

Oblong!

The newest baby - still has his hat

Here's a reminder of what the patch looked like 20 days ago

Eugene Park Tour: Gillespie Butte

Dale and I are not convinced that this Gillespie Butte Park still exists. In following Google Maps, we made the entire circumference around where the park was supposed to be. We have a feeling this land was sold to developers. There are  many signs that the land has recently been divided into lots for home. Most of those lots are sold. Paved cul-de-sacs and curbing has been added.

We did get out and walk around the vacant lots. Man! What a view!

Most of the area looks like this, with dried grass and underbrush, surrounded by rows of evergreen trees.

We did see a mama turkey with her chicks resting among the underbrush. A big tom turkey was walking along the road.

On the lower part of the hill is this impressive retaining wall with two waterfall fountains

and this signage that let us know we were on the right hill.

The city's webpage said the park is studded with oak trees. Is that an oak tree there next to the waterfall? If so, we couldn't figure out how to reach that spot. There was a lot of construction going on in the neighborhood, though. Some of the big trucks could have been blocking a park entrance.

#traveltuesdays