Dads take a Father’s Day hike at Chilliwack Community Forest

CHILLIWACK — The City of Chilliwack honoured fathers a little differently this year—a walk through mother nature at the Chilliwack Community Forest.

Steve Clegg, environmental services specialist for the City said this is the first Father’s Day in the forest through the city’s guided nature sessions. “We’ve been doing guided nature sessions since April, so we haven’t been doing this for very long,” Clegg explained. “We’ve had a lot of interest from all kinds of residents and a lot of families.”

As Father’s Day approached, the nature enthusiast thought of a session specifically designed for dads and their families. “Instead of having just an activity, have it as a meaningful alternative where folks can connect with nature and have purpose behind it,” he said. “A little bit of education and forest stewardship hidden kind of in the background of the message.”

Clegg guided the session, taking a group of approximately 20 people through the ‘Lower Canyon Loop’ trail. “We use our senses a lot,” he said. “I think we have the ability to hone in on them a lot more, especially when we step into nature.”

Throughout the hike, Clegg encouraged participants to pay attention to the sounds of the forest. “We were hearing songbirds that were emitting distress signals,” he emphasized. “We could hear the constant chirping of them in a frequent, fast-paced, and worried tone.”

While hikers stood in absolute silence to hear the faint, but consistent chirping, Clegg indicated that the birds were “disturbed”. “By taking those sound cues and digging a little deeper as to what might be happening, we were fortunate enough to find two juvenile barred owls,” he continued. “Everyone was able to see them and experience owls in a natural setting, it was pretty wild.”

Clegg was pleased with the turnout of the session considering the cold weather. “It was just that magical mist floating through the treetops,” he said. “So, we got a great experience today.”

The next guided nature session is slated for June 27 at the Great Blue Heron Nature Reserve. For more information, people can visit www.chilliwack.com.