I, II, III

Winter is finally starting to fade away.

Visit #944, Friday 3 April 15, 8:40-11:50AM, 2.9 miles.

Temps in the 50's, occasional showers.

Visit #945, Saturday 4 April 15, 10:40AM-1:15PM, 2.5 miles.

Temps in the 50's, sunny and very windy.

Visit #946, Sunday 5 April 15, 6:00-7:25PM, 2.1 miles.

Temps in the 50's, occasional sprinkles.

I've been meaning to find a schedule for adhering to my "5 Year Plan" to trim the roadside from the park up to Castle Craig and West Peak. I think I found it.

I'll earmark holidays solely for roadside trimming. And this past weekend being Easter was the perfect time to implement my schedule.

I started on Friday, and began at the south end of Merimere Reservoir, heading north. The west side of the road needs all the clearing. My goal is to trim back any long term growth to the far side of the guardrail so the vegetation doesn't force walkers into the roadway.

I'm so selective in what I cut; I don't want to spoil the scenery if I can help it-I'm not looking to clearcut my way. Done properly, you might not even notice any work was actually done.

It's actually hard to capture in the photos what I've accomplished.

There was no way I was going to complete this section of road all the way to the north end of Merimere Reservoir in one session. When it came time to end Friday's work, I had to devise a way to mark how far I'd reached. My solution-

I did an about face, whipped out a trash bag, and collected garbage on my way back to the park.

On Saturday I picked up where I left off, which was easy to find with my ingenious marking system.

On the return trip, I opened up another trash bag and in so doing, came upon my Find of the Week, straight from Chapter 90 in the Manual of Obstetrics.

I returned to the park and deposited my second bag of trash.

I fell short of my self-imposed goal for the holiday weekend, to reach the jersey barriers which surround where the asphalt is giving way to the reservoir. So, I returned on Easter Sunday to put a period on that sentence.

While packing up to head to Hubbard Park, I couldn't find my first pair of gloves-I must have tossed them in the hamper-so I grabbed my spare pair.

Upon arriving at the parking lot I got out of my car and walked around to the back to unload my gear, only to find-

-MY MISSING GLOVES! Not only did I leave them in the parking lot, they stayed there untouched for 24 hours and I parked in the exact spot where I left them on Saturday! Time to play the lottery...

I reached my objective, and marked my territory.

I opened up my third trash bag of the weekend and picked up trash on the way back to the parking lot. Enroute I scored a double; my second Find of the Week.

Why this walking pole was tied to the tree is beyond me.

I dropped off my bag of trash and I remembered to take my gloves.

Hopefully I'll continue with my 5 Year Plan on Memorial Day Weekend. In the meantime, take a walk on the road and see if you can spot my I, II, and III. Find and photograph all three, send me the photos, and win a prize!