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This week we head to Malcolm Knapp Research Forest located in Maple Ridge, BC. As you can probably tell by the name, this forest is the research forest for the University of British Columbia department of forestry; as well, it also hosts as research grounds for departments from Simon Fraser University, BC government, and the Canadian federal government. The forest is very very big (5157 hectares to be exact), and we only explored a small portion of the southern trails. The southern trails consist 4 main trails colour coded into Red, Yellow, Green, and Blue. The Red, Yellow, and Green trails are relatively flat and short; while the Blue trail is longer and traverses through some elevation. During our hour and a half hike/walk, we stayed mostly on the Red and Yellow trails. We went to the forest in late February back in 2021 during the rainy season, so the forest was cold and wet, but still teeming with life. We saw a lot of different trees, shrubs, ferns, and fungi. This is a great place to get in touch with nature and is accessible year round.
Big sign at the entrance.
Trail leading into the forest from the parking lot. Lots of trees ahead.
Very good info sign.
Fungi and moss.
Shrubs and ferns.
Very tall trees.
Forest trail.
More trails. Very green.
Fallen tree. Look at the area the roots covered compared to the size of the tree trunk.
Even more trees and shrubs.
Small pond next to the trail.
Researching and evaluating the effectiveness of treated wood. The many wood stubs in the background are all test subjects.
Check out my previous hikes:
  1. The Panoramic Views of Panorama Ridge
  2. The Golden Larches of Frosty Mountain
  3. The Winter Snow of Pump Peak at Mount Seymour
  4. Sapphire Waters and Azure Skies of Battle Bluff
  5. It Isn't Always Sunshine and Blue Skies
  6. The Frozen River and Waterfalls of Maligne Canyon
  7. The Amazing Arches of Arches National Park
  8. The Bizarre Hoodoos of Bryce Canyon National Park
  9. The Magnificent Stones of Zion National Park
  10. The Flowing Walls of Lower Antelope Canyon
  11. A Glimpse of Hope at the Hope Lookout Trail
  12. Turquoise Waters viewed from Sea to Summit Trail
  13. The Three Peaks of Mount Seymour
  14. The Serene Winter Scene at Dog Mountain
  15. Murrin Loop and Jurassic Ridge
  16. Yosemite National Park
  17. The Bear's Hump at Waterton National Park
  18. Views of Okanagan from Pincushion Mountain Trail
  19. The Half Frozen Waterfalls at Franklin Falls
  20. Hole in the Wall of Vancouver Island
  21. Sometimes You Just Get Lucky
  22. Winter Wonderland at Alexander Falls
  23. Eagle Bluffs
  24. Smuggler Cove Marine Provincial Park
  25. Admiralty Point
  26. Myra Canyon Trail
  27. Garabaldi Lake
  28. Botanical Beach Loop
  29. Wild Pacific Trail Lighthouse Loop
  30. Whistler Train Wreck Trail
  31. Grouse Grind
  32. Crown Mountain
  33. Chance Cove Coastal Trail
  34. Big Four Ice Caves
  35. Stawamus Chief First Peak
  36. Four Lakes Trail at Alice Lake Provincial Park
  37. Four Lakes Trail Winter Revisit
  38. Lindeman Lake Trail
this territory is moderated
I would love to move somewhere with beautiful forests. I have a fear of grizzly bears though!
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Forestry like Bitcoin requires a low time preference- ie patience! Forests, like Bitcoin, are incredible assets.
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Agreed.
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A bit of a different locale than your regular posts. Interesting. Did the kiddos learn a lot?
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Still in Metro Vancouver. But yes, not the typical go up a mountain/hill and see a view kind of hike. We've had our fair share of forest walks, just haven't really posted about them. I've been thinking of doing a waterfall series too; maybe I'll start on that next week.
I'm not sure if they learned a lot. They were quite interested in the info board showing the different plants. They also liked the treated wood testing area and thought the setup was pretty cool.
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Any amanitas?
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Those are the red poisonous mushrooms right? No, we did not see any, although I do remember seeing a huge one during one of our hikes, I forgot which one though. I'm going to try to find it and will share it here if I find it.
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They're not poisonous. They're entheogenic. As with all things, don't take too much of it.
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