Pocket Park in Snow
Today we went out for Small Business Saturday. I noticed that a downtown pocket park, which has been slowly developing for some years, had a small light display. (The town's main light display is in a much bigger park but wasn't turned on yet when we went past.) So I stopped to take some pictures.
This is the left front of the pocket park. You can see a picture frame, a family of polar bears, and a cone of lights.
This is the center front of the pocket park, looking slightly right. You can see the cone of lights, Santa, and a family of reindeer.
This is the right front looking into the park. At least a couple of different points have those cool brick circles. The sidewalk runs straight to the center circle. This park has beautiful and elegant hardscaping that makes it attractive even though most of the plants are dead except for the dormant trees and bushes.
This is the first bridge over the little manmade creek that runs all around the park. Even drained for winter, the creekbed is pretty. Also the snow highlights the bridge effect really well.
This is the creekbed to the left of the bridge. It is lined with large pebbles and edged with bigger boulders.
This is the creekbed to the right of the bridge. You can see a couple of park benches toward the left and some of the bike parking racks toward the right.
This rock pile stands to the right of the center circle. I believe it to be a waterfall in summer, because of how it connects to the creekbed.
This rock pile stands to the left of the center circle, likely another waterfall. I suspect that all this water attracts a lot of wildlife in summer, even though the park is small with only a modest amout of cover. That's enough for birds, squirrels, and rabbits anytime. Foxes, possums, skunks, raccoons, and other shyer critters likely come only at night.
Here's a closer view of another circle toward the back of the park. It currently holds a Santa figure and signs for local businesses sponsoring this display. There are a bunch more signs not visible in this closeup. So this park visit is another suitable activity for Small Business Saturday. :D
This stone slab spans the creekbed, but is not connected with the sidewalks. I suspect it is used by wildlife, although there are no tracks in the snow as yet.
Here is the creekbed to the right of the second bridge. The pink coil appears to be a thin plastic hose.
This is the creekbed to the left of the second bridge. Colorful dried grasses and brown flower heads line the banks.
Footprints in the snow cross the second bridge, a solitary sign of life in an empty park.
Toward the front of the park, a large bed of asters blooms stubbornly under the snow. A few weeks ago, this would have been swarming with pollinators.
Purple asters cup the snow.
A sidewalk leads down the center of the pocket park to the cone of lights on the center circle, and you can also see off to the left.
Here's a closer view of the reindeer figures off to the left.
Look closely at the base of the this "rock" and you can see that it's actually a utility rock, a shell hiding some unsightly bit of park equipment. This is one of the better models I've seen and looks pretty natural except for where the anchor shows. If you use one at home, just hide the base with a bit of mulch or ground cover plants to make it look more natural.
Here's a better view of the front picture frame, which is one of the nicer light structures.
This drinking fountain is a lovely bit of metalwork. The style is very classic, before mass-market institutional styles became the norm; but the wheelchair-accessible shape marks it as recent equipment.
I believe this is some sort of red-twig dogwood, of which there are multiple possibilities. It's a popular landscape plant for winter interest. Look how well the red stems stand out against the white snow. This park does a great job of looking good even in the cold season.
This is the left front of the pocket park. You can see a picture frame, a family of polar bears, and a cone of lights.
This is the center front of the pocket park, looking slightly right. You can see the cone of lights, Santa, and a family of reindeer.
This is the right front looking into the park. At least a couple of different points have those cool brick circles. The sidewalk runs straight to the center circle. This park has beautiful and elegant hardscaping that makes it attractive even though most of the plants are dead except for the dormant trees and bushes.
This is the first bridge over the little manmade creek that runs all around the park. Even drained for winter, the creekbed is pretty. Also the snow highlights the bridge effect really well.
This is the creekbed to the left of the bridge. It is lined with large pebbles and edged with bigger boulders.
This is the creekbed to the right of the bridge. You can see a couple of park benches toward the left and some of the bike parking racks toward the right.
This rock pile stands to the right of the center circle. I believe it to be a waterfall in summer, because of how it connects to the creekbed.
This rock pile stands to the left of the center circle, likely another waterfall. I suspect that all this water attracts a lot of wildlife in summer, even though the park is small with only a modest amout of cover. That's enough for birds, squirrels, and rabbits anytime. Foxes, possums, skunks, raccoons, and other shyer critters likely come only at night.
Here's a closer view of another circle toward the back of the park. It currently holds a Santa figure and signs for local businesses sponsoring this display. There are a bunch more signs not visible in this closeup. So this park visit is another suitable activity for Small Business Saturday. :D
This stone slab spans the creekbed, but is not connected with the sidewalks. I suspect it is used by wildlife, although there are no tracks in the snow as yet.
Here is the creekbed to the right of the second bridge. The pink coil appears to be a thin plastic hose.
This is the creekbed to the left of the second bridge. Colorful dried grasses and brown flower heads line the banks.
Footprints in the snow cross the second bridge, a solitary sign of life in an empty park.
Toward the front of the park, a large bed of asters blooms stubbornly under the snow. A few weeks ago, this would have been swarming with pollinators.
Purple asters cup the snow.
A sidewalk leads down the center of the pocket park to the cone of lights on the center circle, and you can also see off to the left.
Here's a closer view of the reindeer figures off to the left.
Look closely at the base of the this "rock" and you can see that it's actually a utility rock, a shell hiding some unsightly bit of park equipment. This is one of the better models I've seen and looks pretty natural except for where the anchor shows. If you use one at home, just hide the base with a bit of mulch or ground cover plants to make it look more natural.
Here's a better view of the front picture frame, which is one of the nicer light structures.
This drinking fountain is a lovely bit of metalwork. The style is very classic, before mass-market institutional styles became the norm; but the wheelchair-accessible shape marks it as recent equipment.
I believe this is some sort of red-twig dogwood, of which there are multiple possibilities. It's a popular landscape plant for winter interest. Look how well the red stems stand out against the white snow. This park does a great job of looking good even in the cold season.
