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Back to HomeFeature Article - April 19, 2012 Taking a walk on the wild sideby Julie Druker

Photo: On April 13 a group of 20 wildlife enthusiasts walked 15 km from Mountain Grove to Sharbot Lake in support of the Canadian Wildlife Federation's Walk for Wildlife.

On April 13, a group of 20 wildlife and walking enthusiasts completed a three-hour, 15 kilometer walk along the CPR trail from Mountain Grove to Sharbot Lake in support of Canadian Wildlife Federation, who this year are celebrating their 50th anniversary. The event called "Walk for Wildlife" aims to raise awareness and celebrate national Wildlife Week, which was April 8-14.

As quoted on the CWF website the walk is to “celebrate the conservation success stories and raise awareness of the inherent natural beauty of the Canadian wilderness by encouraging people to get acquainted with some of the iconic species and scenic places that exist right across the country, as well as to inspire Canadians to an even greater commitment to wildlife and habitat conservation.” Walkers from across the country are asked to log in their kilometers and organizers are hoping to see a total exceeding 19,620 km.

This is the second annual walk for the CWF in the area and it was spearheaded by Gloria Opzoomer of Balderson. In an email she sent following the walk she reported her and her group's wildlife sightings along the way, which included geese, loons, a pair of osprey, a red tailed hawk, wood ducks, mallards, wild turkeys, turkey vultures, great blue herons, pileated woodpeckers, juncos, red-winged blackbirds, phoebes, robins, painted turtles, frogs (leopard, wood and chorus), garter snakes, spring azure and mourning cloak butterflies and last, but not least a wolf spider.

The walk ended in Sharbot Lake at the Crossing Pub where the walkers lunched and Gloria handed out special pins and prizes recognizing the group's efforts. Congratulations to all of the walkers, whose efforts added a total of 291 kilometers to the country total.