The Herons of Stanley Park

Stanley Park is a spectacular 1000 acre city park in downtown Vancouver. It’s also a decent novel by Timothy Taylor, but that’s beside the point.

A colony of herons resides in the trees between the Parks Board office and the tennis courts. There must be 50 nests. In the spring, it’s great fun to wander down to the park and watch them busily building their nests and listen to them squawking at each other. This weekend, I took a few photos (though, if you want to see real photos of birds, visit Ray’s site).

I have fond memories of working on the patio at the Horseshoe Bay Boathouse in West Vancouver. When I cleaned up at the end of the night, I could hear the herons’ throaty calls across the bay. Nature was constantly encroaching on that restaurant–in addition to the herons and eagles, raccoons would regularly wander by, looking for a snack. That is, for my money, the best restaurant patio in the city.