Return to Mud Bay Park

I normally see Mud Bay from the south side at Crescent Beach and Blackie Spit but today Nick and I drove to the north side and the park nestled between the water and highway 99. The drive went smoothly as signage was good pointing out the correct Colebrook Road to use. Soon we were driving under the noisy highway and entering the parking lot of Mud Bay Park. There were a dozen or so cars parked but lots of open choices for us. We picked a spot and grabbed our cameras.

The noise from the highway was noticeable in the parking lot but once we got on the walkway leading to the water it quickly died away. We were now in the fresh open grasses of the shoreline. As we made our way south to the water, we stopped at many points taking photos of the wild flowers. Nick was particularly diligent in snapping a photo with his phone of every flower and plant he came across. He had an identification app running and he enjoyed learning the names and info about each species as he saw them. It was a surprise at a few flowers, we even learned of a third type of blackberry vine! 

Once we reached the shoreline trail, we noticed that the tide was way out. The area was indeed a huge mud bay! The mud bank extended for kilometers in the south and westerly directions. I enjoyed the contours of the edge – where the salty mud stops and the grassy shore starts. Since the tide was way out not many birds were present today. We did spot some busy bees pollinating the wild flowers. Looking due west towards Tsawwassen I noticed tall crane like structures in the distance. I wasn’t sure what they were but on later reflection I determined that they were the cranes at the Roberts Bank Super-Port facility. It was surprizing to see how tall they look from such distance. When on the ferry to Victoria and much closer they don’t seem as big.

We did only the basic loop trail today, not overly long but it being warm out and the temperature rising we didn’t feel much like extending the walk with an out and back section. So, when we arrived at the fork we took the route back to the lot. Along this section the black berries were thick and they were juicy and sweet. Now one might argue that we should leave them to the birds but they are an invasive weed and the birds are not used to them which is why they were virtually untouched. As we neared the parking lot, we passed another photographer with a huge camera lens walking out to the shore line, obviously the photographer was coming to snap bird photos, not weeds like me.

We had enjoyed the brief visit to the area and gathered a good number of photos and fresh air. It really is a pretty spot and it offers good access to the long walking/bike trail that continues along the shore for 20km to Tsawwassen. Perhaps one day should I get an e-bike I will set out along it for even more views. Back driving on Colebrook Road, we passed a couple kilometers worth of huge blackberry mounds. They were ripe and no one was picking them! So many berries free for eating. Today’s adventure was short but enjoyable but now we needed to buy some groceries for dinner, and no I wasn’t buying any tiny tubs of black berries.