Canadian Firefighters Memorial, July 20, 2014

We have had pretty good conditions for plant growth this summer. Most of the plant life on the memorial site thrives. One of the downy snowberry trees looks like it may be in trouble, as it has shed much of its bark. The snowberry trees that are doing better look like they are shedding their bark a bit, too, so, hopefully that's just a characteristic of the tree. Basically, the site looks really good right now and that's about all I can say about it.

This is the downy serviceberry furthest from the road and the effects of salt spray. As you can see the tree is full of green berries. They will ripen to a very colourful red. By the time I get back the birds may have taken most of them.

I wanted to photograph the white flowers here, so I took them from a low angle to include the statue. I thought it turned out quite well, so I did the same for the next picture. I think this is the better of the two.

The lighting on this day was a little crazy. I was busy trying to find an angle where the statue and the traffic light didn't conflict so much. I didn't notice the bright cloud over on the right, but I think it makes the shot.

The maple trees are doing very well. They are extending new growth upward. These indigenous trees tend to grow upward quite rapidly and then fill out. Unless they are a different cultivar from the one I had their fall colour is yellow.

I was searching the wall for a name. Then I looked up at this spot to see berries.

I don't know whether that clump of dried material collected their naturally or if someone arranged it that way. Whatever the case, I expect it won't be there when the ceremony takes place. There are some long standing friends of the Canadian Fallen Firefighters Foundation who make sure the memorial is in pristine condition for the ceremony. They are appreciated and I thank them for all they have done.

Canadian Firefighters Memorial, July 6, 2014

I noticed two major changes to the Canadian Firefighters Memorial when I went to photograph it on this day. There are several names that have been added to the wall and the firefighter has a new patina.

If you compare him to the photographs in the next earliest posting on this blog you will see that he was a dusty green colour. Now he's a shiny dark brown. Taking a very close look at him I saw brush stroke marks. You may be able to see them in the photographs.

The newly engraved names show up as a very light colour as compared to names put on earlier. I photographed a few panels where you may be able to see this. I'm sure I didn't get them all.

Since Bluesfest was in full swing I parked such that my approach to the memorial was from a path to the south of it, which is why the first few photographs show a different approach to the site.