Tammy Nara

PAINT AND HIKE

Make Time for what is Important. Get Outside. Create, Connect.

Central Park in Roseville, Minnesota

In the winter, this park has the best walking trails in the area. They are cleared of snow soon after each snowfall. All year round this is a great place for a long walk. There is a nice mix of lakeside, woods, ballfields, gardens, and boardwalk through wetlands. They do not clear snow from the boardwalk, but why should they? The wetlands should be kept natural. It is 1.2 miles (2 km) from one end to the other. If you include all the paths, your total walk will be close to 4.5 miles. (7.25 km)

This route was 4.55 miles.

On the west end is a parking lot on Lexington Avenue. This section has the bandshell, playgrounds, picnic grounds, sand volleyball, the lake, fishing pier, and a couple softball fields.

Playground with a slide that looks like a rocket.
Yes, the “Rocket Slide” is still there. It was old when my kids played on it 15 years ago and this looks to be in excellent shape, so it must be an updated version?

On your walk around the lake you will see the man-made waterfall. Even though it is obviously not real, it is still enjoyable to watch the water cascade over the rocks. When I want to practice drawing rocks and water but I can’t get to Duluth, I come here.

tan rocks, snow, water.
Light, shadow, and the sound of rushing water create beauty.
Bridge over a man-made creek with rocks and small waterfall.
Here is the same place: took a step back and dialed down the color intensity.
bridge over a small creek. Deep snow.
Same place after that last big snow. You can tell it is a spring snow by the way it is pockmarked from snow falling off the trees and the meltiness at the edges.
snow cleared from a trail. a red bench with diamond pattern.
Impressive how quickly Roseville clears the trails for walking. Thanks Roseville!
No worries about the bench. Most people do not stop to sit when it is cold out.
lots of snow cleared from a trail. almost covered red bench
And again Roseville cleared the trails right away after a big snow. See you in the spring, bench!
branches, snow, blue sky
This is my favorite photo from Roseville Central Park from last winter. Thick and thin, light and dark, Bright blue, interesting abstract shapes, what more do you need.
looking up a tree trunk with reddish branches and evergreen needles
This tree is near the Victoria Street parking lot. The red and green outlined in white attracted my attention.
sunset on a lake with partial ice and geese
This was taken standing in front of the waterfall facing west. It was only a few days that the ice was partial like this.
snowy trail through an wetland. street sign says bike route. another sign says yield to peds.
Once you leave the busy area between Lexington Avenue and Victoria Street and pass the ball fields, the park turns more natural.
rectangular paving stones, shrubbery, a gray post holding up criss crossed beams.
On the other side of the natural space is the Roseville Arboretum. Maintained by the Rotary Club, this beautiful outdoor space is a pleasant place to rest and take in the variety of plant life.
foreground is fuschia hot pink flower. a paved curved path in middle ground
Parking for the Arboretum is on Dale Street.
Boardwalk with railings. snow on ground. wetland.
Cross Dale Street and you will be at the Harriet Alexander Nature Center. Years ago, this boardwalk was sinking into the bog. It was an enjoyable challenge if you did not mind getting your feet wet and maybe a bit muddy. Now it is solid and has railings. Less exciting but more accessible to more people.
purple flowers, a deck, algae covered lake with trees in background
In the center of the bog the boardwalk opens up to provide an outdoor classroom or gathering space. This was taken last summer. It won’t be long now until it looks like this again. Here’s to spring!

I am sure you have noticed that these photos are from many different times. This is a park that has a long history with me. Many of my “reboots” began here. It is fitting to have this be today’s post since I need to restart my commitment to my artmaking yet again. That is ok. I’ll keep restarting as many times as it takes.

Today a child in a playground shouted, “I’m alive! I live! I survive!” Good for you, kid. Me too.

Tomorrow is a walk for suicide prevention. I’ll be in it. If you would like to support a walk near you, here is a link: https://afsp.donordrive.com/

What do you do when you need to get back into a habit you were trying to develop?

Or…Do you have information about Roseville Central Park that would be helpful to people planning to go there? I hear they have outdoor yoga on Wednesday mornings, can anyone confirm that?

I hope you all are well. If hiking is your thing, keep hiking! If painting is your thing, keep painting! We are alive. We live. We survive.

Tammy Nara

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