Santa Rosa’s Howarth Park is popular with many of the locals. The hiking trails around Lake Ralphine connect to Spring Lake, another favorite local spot to enjoy the outdoors. When we lived here, we spent lots of time at both of these parks. Every time I come back now and visit so many years later, I have fond memories of our boys dangling their fishing poles in the water and patiently waiting for a fish to bite the bait. Other times, we’d just sit and watch the ducks and geese and during the summer months we’d meet friends at the Spring Lake swimming lagoon for an afternoon of splashing fun!
Canada Goslings
Along the northern trail around Lake Ralphine
Across the lake from the boat house
Black-crowned Night Heron
Alligator Lizard
The Fishing Dock
What a beautiful park!
Thank you Trish for calling me about this heron on the other side of the lake!
🙂
in cahoots with muddy boots 
Wow Sabine, these are all amazing photos. Those country roads remind me of the road less traveled.
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Thank you, Arlene! I’m always happy when I visit there! Some of my favorite friends still live there and I love seeing them whenever I can. This park is right in the city! 🙂
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They are lucky to have a park in the city. Seldom do we see greens nowadays especially here that there are lots of high-rise buildings in the corner.
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Oh! Many of our cities all across the country have parks. Some more than others. A peaceful green space is important for the well-being of humans. Plus it gives animals a place to live.
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That’s true! herein the city, that’s not their priority although there are some developers who incorporate that in their plans.
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City government often requires builders to put in parks, but they also purchase undeveloped land and create city, regional and state parks. It’s one way to keep open spaces.
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Stellar shots, Sabine! 🙂
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Thank you, Tom! 🙂
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Great photos, again, Sabine. We just returned from your beautiful state. Our nephew got married at Mt. Hood Organic Farm which was a delightful venue. The food was excellent! My family actually stayed on the WA side at Overwood, right on the Columbia with an excellent view of Mt. Hood. I loved watching it change as the cloud cover came and went. And sunsets against the mountain was stunning.
The last day we were there all day was Monday. My husband noticed smoke at the base of Mt. Hood and sure enough I looked at the local news and a wildfire was covering about 40 acres of timber and brush. We watched all day, seeing the fire grow so high that we could see flames all the way from WA. By the next morning it looked like it had calmed down. It happened very close to the wedding venue but the reports said no structures were involved so I assume the farm was spared.
We had a lovely drive back to the Portland Airport, taking a side road on scenic 30; saw Horsetail Falls. We also enjoyed time in Hood River where most of the other wedding guests were staying.
Once again, I had a great time in OR and wish I could have stopped by to see you. Maybe another time. You live in a lovely state with very friendly people. Just thought I’d share…
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I’m glad that you had another great visit to our beautiful state! The Columbia River Gorge is just stunning! I don’t go out there enough. Horsetail Falls is one of my favorite falls. I haven’t heard anything about a fire out there, but hopefully it wasn’t too bad. With all the rain along the entire West-coast I hope that the fire season isn’t going to be too bad. I love living in Oregon, and also loved and still love California as well. If you ever have a chance to visit Washington State, you should. It’s just as beautiful and also has friendly people and the stunning Olympic peninsula.
Perhaps it’ll work out to meet up some day when you come back to this area!
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I actually have many reasons to visit WA. My brother-in-law and wife live on Whidbey. My step daughter and her fiance live in Seattle as well as the nephew who just got married. Another nephew is getting married in the Seattle area this August, so I will get to attend another fun family celebration this summer. It is a lovely place, especially Whidbey and the San Juan islands and yes! the Olympic peninsula. I haven’t explored much inland though. Another adventure for my list!
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Fun! I haven’t been on any of the islands, but hope to one of these days. My husband has been to Spokane several times for work and liked the city. It’s very isolated and gets really cold in the winter. It’s also conservative once you move inland all along the West-coast. I really like the Olympia area and Port Townsend!
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Oh my gosh those little Goslings!! Wonderful photos 🙂
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Thanks M.B.! I found them adorable and fortunately the parents weren’t too protective!
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Perhaps Lake Ralphine deserves nominations as a local “treasure.” It indeed is well used – by birders, fishermen and fisherwomen, nature lovers, sailers, picnickers, stone skippers, workers on lunch break and friends out for a slow walk and an even slower talk. The greatest users of the lake are the frogs, the swans, the trout, the red shouldered hawk, the black-crowned night heron, and the entire community of life there. The place works. I just looked up the history. The lake is formed by an earthen dam which dates back to 1882. I’ll tell my grandson that the bank of the lake where he pitched his stones into the water so as to see how far the ripples would widen, I’ll tell him that his pitcher’s mound is 130 years old.
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Trish, I agree on making Lake Ralphine a local treasure! I always appreciated the park, but took it for granted when we lived there. Now I see it with different eyes when I only get to go there once a year. I did google the park and it’s history. The thing I noticed most walking around the lake was that I saw not one piece of trash. Just a few cigarette butts on the trail. That I found very impressive! I hope to see you there again next visit! 🙋
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Beautiful, Sabine and such nice memories. When we returned to central Oregon we began revisiting places we went with our kids, and now with our grandkids. It’s pretty darn special! Have a great weekend.
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Same to you, Missy! 🙋
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What can I say – the scenery at Howarth Park is so beautiful, but the goslings and cygnets with their parents just make me smile. And that up-close shot of the Canada Goose – he/she looks close enough to touch. What a lovely hiking day you had at this venue Sabine.
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It is a gorgeous park, Linda, isn’t it! The Canada geese there are used to people but do hiss a little if one does get too close. I always keep a respectful distance from all creatures I encounter and make good use of my telephoto lens. 🙂
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It sure is Sabine – that is my idea of a beautiful nature venue, creatures raising their young. I was going to go to a bigger park yesterday as it was nice weather, low humidity and I did not feel safe holding the big camera due to my finger and holding the grab bar, changing to bigger lens (just 300 kit lens) so just stayed local. We have a rainy/stormy week ahead, including holiday – I despair with this weather.
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We’re supposed to get some rain later, and perhaps a little thunder storm. It’s been cool here, but it always warms up once we hit the 4th of July. Hopefully your fingers will be as good as new soon. Enjoy your long weekend and may the weather cooperate for once!
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We have a steamy week ahead Sabine and a little rain/storms daily – the wet weather is a pain but many people shoot off fireworks so it will keep rooftops and lawns wet for errant firecrackers.
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It’s been funky weather here as well. There was even a small tornado that touched down here in Portland a couple of days ago! It uprooted some trees, took shingles of houses and disrupted power for people in that area. This is Oregon and we never used to get tornadoes. Now we do! 😳 Climate change?
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I was just thinking as I read the first part of your message that I didn’t think you tornadoes out that way – that is worrisome. We get them in Michigan May to August mostly and we had three or four touch down (all of them small) last Summer and fairly close to me, five miles for one (near Heritage Park with the little red schoolhouse) and the other time there were several tornadoes the same night near Lake Erie Metropark. We have an entire week of volatile weather and that’s why I shut down early last night, making myself even further behind here
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Good luck with the weather, Linda! I think that tornadoes are a fairly recent thing here. I can’t recall ever hearing about any along the West-coast in years past. Hopefully it doesn’t become a trend!
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Thanks Sabine – we will be getting something tonight they say but at least the heat of the day has passed so that’s a good thing. Yes, I hope your tornado was just a fluke.
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What a beautiful park, Sabine! I loved all the babies and the little black crowned night heron. I love all the photos actually. They make you feel alive. I’m sure we have parks similar to that but I don’t go to see them. So I make do visiting here. Thanks for sharing your trip. I love how you are now having lots of conversations here as well. 😉 Have a great weekend.
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Thanks Marlene! It’s one of my favorite places down there! I’m happy to hear that the post made you feel alive! Nature makes me feel alive too, and I think that’s probably why I’m drawn to it. I hope your weekend will be good too! 🙋
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Great pictures. I hope I make it out there one day. So many places to explore.
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Thanks James! I hope you make it out this way too some day. There are so many beautiful places to discover. Thanks for stopping by!
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Can’t believe I missed this one. I was looking through old emails and found it.
Right in my on back yard. It took me a second to recognize the woman and child on the dock. Ha! Ha!
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Hi Christine! 🙋
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