Happy Holidays & some FOUP News

From the Dec 16th, 2012 email sent out, by Margaret Lidkea, to Friends of Uplands Park members:

Welcome to our newest Steering Committee member, Ben Clinton-Baker. Ben is a member of the Municipal Heritage Committee and offers great expertise to our committee.

Ben will also be on the panel of our upcoming event:

Heritage of Uplands Park
7 pm April 16, 2013
Windsor Park Pavilion

Thanks to Helen Johnson and Ralph Archibald, who have retired as members of the Steering Committee, for their greatly appreciated contributions. We wish them well as they continue to be involved in the community and as members of FOUP.

We welcome new members who may be interested in being on our Steering Committee.

Thanks to the financial donation of the Rotary Club of Oak Bay, two bicycle racks are now installed at two entrances to Uplands Park.

The Kiosk Project members are having a Visionary Session on Thursday December 27 at 12:30 pm to 2 pm. If you would like to participate please phone Margaret at 250-595-8084.

The federal Habitat Stewardship Fund has finally given money to Oak Bay Parks for Restoration projects in Uplands Park. This Fund is only available because we have so many volunteers working in Uplands Park removing invasive plants. THANK YOU TO ALL WHO HAVE PARTICIPATED!

HAPPY HOLIDAYS TO ALL!
SEE YOU IN 2013

Margaret Lidkea and Kathleen Matthews
Co-Chairs of the Friends of Uplands Park

Bike Racks for Uplands Park Welcomed – Nov 4, 2012

The Friends of Uplands Park is so pleased to welcome bike racks, newly installed at two of the entrances to Uplands Park. One set of racks (pictured below) is located on the grassy area beside the parking lot at the entrance to Cattle Point, across from the new Uplands Park sign. The other set is located at one of the entrances along Dorset. These bike racks have been generously funded by Oak Bay Rotary. They were installed by Oak Bay Parks staff in time for the November 4, 2012 Tree Appreciation Day, an annual event organized by Oak Bay Parks, and, this year, held at Uplands Park. Mayor Jensen was on hand to acknowledge the importance of these new bike racks and encouraged folks to enjoy a bike ride to Uplands Park, but to walk through the Park. Bike riding through Uplands Park, is not allowed, because biking, even along the trails, causes extensive damage to the many rare plants in Uplands Park.

Blackberry Thorns May Help Discourage Bikes in Uplands Park

I walked my bike through Uplands Park last week (I did not ride my bike) and managed to pick up 3 separate blackberry thorns. OK, I had first parked my bike right beside the Blackberry Patch while I was picking blackberries, so this is likely where I managed to collect all those thorns, rather than on the trails. In any case, this lead to three trips to Oak Bay Bikes & 3 new inner tubes. Oak Bay Bikes only found one thorn each time my tire went flat, thus the 3 successive visits. Riding a bike is prohibited in Uplands Park because of all the endangered species, but maybe the possibility of blackberry thorns (and rose thorns too) will help keep all bikes, even those being walked, out of Uplands Park? I hope I learned a lesson here, much as I love to wander through Uplands Park pushing my bike in one entrance and out another. Mostly I hope we can get a bike rack at the Midland entrance to Uplands Park, where the big blackberry patch is found. Lots of community members are picking blackberries in Uplands Park these days and the blackberries are plentiful and very beautiful. (Posted by Kathleen)

Oak Bay News: Bike Racks & New Information Kiosk Planned for Uplands Park

The August 23, 2012 issue of the Oak Bay News has an article on the new bike racks approved for Uplands Park. Approval was granted at the August 13, 2012 Oak Bay Council Meeting. The article also notes the new information Kiosk that is being planned for Uplands Park by the Friends of Uplands Park. The bike racks and Kiosk proposals were presented to Oak Bay Council by Margaret Lidkea and Kathleen Matthews, on behalf of the Friends of Uplands Park. The Oak Bay News article can be read online at New features help protect Uplands Park