Drive to Elkton

 The day before the drive to Elkton Sharyn and I visited Delta Ponds a wonderful wetlands area in Eugene, Oregon.

"Over five decades ago gravel mining cut off what is now the Delta Ponds natural area from the flow of water from the Willamette River. Today, after 10 years of planning and phased implementation, water is once again flowing from the Willamette through Delta Ponds – creating 2.2 miles of valuable side channel habitat for juvenile Chinook salmon and a wide variety of other species."

City of Eugene Delta Ponds Restoration from MetroTV on Vimeo.

 We didn't stay long that day but did take a short walk on the north end of the wetland park seeing some ducks...

... a posing Cormorant and even a great blue heron on the far right...

... and a slightly larger picture here.

"Delta Ponds is a 150-acre waterway site consisting of numerous ponds, channels, wetlands, and associated riparian areas. This unique natural area owned by the City of Eugene borders a stretch of the Willamette River, just downstream from Valley River Center. For many, it is a favorite spot for bird watching, fishing, and enjoying the outdoors."

I like these red not sure what these are ...

... white berries possibly banenberry.

So on the day of our drive to Elkton we stopped by Pass Creek County Park part of the Douglas County Park System and found some wandering Geese...

The park is a great place to stay in your RV with 30 full hookup sites and is just off of Interstate 5 south of Cottage Grove at the Curtin exit.

There were also some ducks ...

...and Sharyn also spotted a hooded merganser ...

Swimming around enjoying the nice warm day.

When we got close to Elkton I got to stop and take some pictures of one of my favorite places on earth...

... it's a small valley on the east side of the hill that drops into Elkton...

... and is on my top 10 most beautiful and serene places on earth.

The north side of the road is a tree covered forest that was wonderfully white, blue and green that day ...

... but to the south it was all green and softly lit.

 

The town of Elkton is restoring the southernmost fur trading post of the Hudson Bay Company.  The Hudson's Bay Company is the oldest commercial corporation in North America and one of the oldest in the world. In 1836, Hudson’s Bay Company established Fort Umpqua near the present day town of Elkton, Douglas County, Oregon. The Fort was a regional center for the fur trade and many Coos, Lower Umpqua, and Siuslaw Indians traded hides for goods there. The fort was destroyed by a fire on 15 Nov 1851 and the post finally closed in 1854 as the fur trade diminished.

Quote of the Day ~

By the late 1850's the Community was selling more than 100,000 traps a year to, among other customers, the Hudson's Bay Company ~ Spencer Klaw from "Without Sin"