CHURN CREEK
Churn Creek: going home again. Whoever said that you can't go home, was wrong. And you can go even farther back to long before humans appeared. Churn Creek; a timeless place and spiritual power center whose origins can be traced back to ancient oceans. These clay cliffs began as deep silt sediment on ocean floors until mega-thrusts heaved them above continental plates as clay ground, continuously driven east across this region until this mighty Fraser and Churn carved jagged canyon walls and ravines.
Muddy Churn joins turbid Fraser in sandy rock-strewn delta boulder field. Listen to the steady, reassuring sound of the big river, punctuated by falling clay and rock debris cliff side. See Bighorn sheep dancing up there, some don't make it across. On our side the sandbars build and shrink as the seasons change and river flows alter.
Spring now, the snow has left and these semi-desert grasslands stir with a diversity of new life. Tiny Prickly Pear cacti dare to sprout delicate spineless fingers in dry soil. Black ants crawl from their rotted cottonwood nests to fly and clumsily bounce off our pant legs. Tall bunchgrass and sage fly their new spring colour while tumbleweeds roll in the canyon gusts. The air is fresh and sweet with the fragrance of sage. Redwing blackbirds chirp loudly while warblers call their high-pitched ear piercing cries. Rufus hummingbirds zoom by with motorized wing beats. Mating, nesting time, and birthing are everywhere; the spring ritual continues just as always. Up above on sprawling ranch lands, newborn calf suckle their mothers and young foals rise on shaky legs.
Churn Creek; yes, you can come home again to this sanctuary of the human spirit. Linger and absorb this remarkable mosaic of diversity. Come back again to meditate and appreciate this ecological wonder known now as Tsilhqot'in.
~Bill W
. Meet you guys somewhere, Flying "J" likely.
