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JULY 13, 2012 Vol. 117, Issue 135
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Stingrays chalk up another title Page 11
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PROUDLY SERVING THE COMMUNITIES OF
ROSSLAND, WARFIELD, TRAIL, MONTROSE, FRUITVALE & SALM SALMO
Runoff, erosion and high water all make for treacherous trails Society preaches safety on paths BY BREANNE MASSEY Times Staff
BREANNE MASSEY PHOTO
Helen Sebelius (left) and Carolyn MacKinnon began evaluating gardens for the Trail Garden Contest in Tadanac this week.
TRAIL GARDEN CONTEST
Discerning judges grading local gardens BY BREANNE MASSEY Times Staff
People who don’t have a background in art don’t always understand the components of a unique design, but land art can evoke feelings everybody can enjoy. Two out-of-town judges will be visiting 65 concealed gardens in Greater Trail over the next two days to select three winners for the 10th annual Trail Garden Contest Tour that takes place on July 28. After the judges submit their results, the Trail Garden Committee will prepare tour maps of gardens open for public viewings. The tour maps will be available by donation in Ferraro Foods the weekend before the event. And this year’s entries will be scrutinized on some stringent and aesthetic criteria. “Understanding the elements of a design is only one aspect of enjoying a garden,” explained Helen Sebelius, a
Slocan Valley-based judge. sculptural forms, how plants “Another aspect is the sanc- occupy space, the use of coltuary that a garden can offer ours, textures, lines, balance, people—to relax, meditate, unity and repetition. think or read a book. It’s very At a home in Tadanac, she compelling it a way, it’s like ‘Sit explained why using a water down. Slow down. Relax.’” feature to break up a flat yard As a former art profes- was a good use of space. She sor, Sebelius began describ“It’s very challenging couldn’t help ing the soothbut make ing sounds because we want to connections of flowing give everybody merit between water and the – these gardens are sculptures clean lines of and gardenstonework beautiful.” ing. surrounding a CAROLYN MACKINNON “My bias is small pond. that I taught “That’s art for most of my life so cri- what I look for mostly—how I tiquing is one of the most feel when I go into that situachallenging jobs that I’ve ever tion,” she said. “Is it a living, had in my lifetime because breathing arrangement of all you have to remain objective,” of the parts and can I experishe said. “So the objective of ence relief from the busy, looking at something critic- everyday, world. It is a kind of ally plays a huge role in this. a sanctuary.” I try to put my personal biases But Carolyn MacKinnon, on the side, but they certainly a Castlegar-based judge, inform how I view things.” assessed garden design from a Instead, her evaluations slightly more clinical perspecare based on understanding tive.
“We’re given an adjudication form that covers cleanliness, general arrangement, quality of the materials, variety and period of bloom,” stated MacKinnon. “But things I like to see are good coordination of colours, variety of the structure and some continuity in the garden. It’s very challenging because we want to give everybody merit—these gardens are all beautiful.” The winners will be awarded prizes on July 24 at the Colombo Lodge Piazza around 7 p.m. Gardening enthusiasts can attend the event, toast one another and enjoy refreshments during the awards ceremony. “We’re calling it the Mad Hatter’s Tea and we’re encouraging people to wear hats,” said Lynne Worosz, a member of the garden committee. “If they do, they get a rose and that’s on the same day as the garden tour. It’s sort of like an open house.”
The realities of spring runoff could jilt cyclists who have a need for speed. High water levels have dramatically altered the terrain of the Kootenay Columbia Trails Society (KCTS) and the society has asked the community to practice safety while using the trails this season. Trails in the area have been significantly alffected by the heavy spring runoff, creating all sorts of new risks for outdoor enthusiasts, said Isaac Saban, president of KCTS. “I think the biggest concern is for “They’ve all been mountain bikers affected to some traveling down at high speed, even degree but only if there’s a certain five or six (trails) speed that they’re were really used to traveling at, they may not have heavily been on the trails impacted.” this year,” explained ISAAC SABAN Saban. “You could come up to a trail very quickly and it will be far rougher or have more debris than there used to be.” Saban went on to explain that it’s important to learn about the terrain before rushing back into extreme sports this season, at least until the trails have been repaired. “They’ve all been affected to some degree, but only five or six were really heavily impacted,” he said. “I would hope that by the end of the trail season, we will have most of them rebuilt and back in order, but it could be mid-September by the time we get to all of the trails.” Water is part of the issue, but it also comes down to crew availability. The KCTS has a crew of four people who are out working on repairing the trails everyday. In addition, the trails manager, Stewart Spooner, will be spending some time on the ground as well. “They’ll be out there with hand tools doing their best to repair the tread,” Saban explained. “Hopefully, we can improve some of the drainage issues so that similar problems won’t occur in the future.” The crew is currently working on the North End of the Seven Summits trail and will repair Crown Point, near the South side of Trail Creek,
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