A plan to improve fitness is the most common New Year’s resolution - the choice of 48 per cent of people in a recent Forbes survey - ahead of “improve finances” at 38 per cent.
Terra Nova - or new land - lends itself to the fitness resolution. It is an ideal place to walk about and enjoy a natural environment.
The City of Richmond is unique because of its many city parks – places of peace and tranquility.
More and more research is proving the benefits of walking in outdoor, quiet areas.
Terra Nova Natural Area is a great, local destination for walkers. (There is another part of Terra Nova that contains The Sharing Farm – but that is for a future article.)
The park consists of a winding trail through grassland habitat that could have been transplanted from a countryside far from a city.
The park contains many species of birds, encouraged by one human-made feature of the park – wooden bird houses.
Dogs can be walked through the area, but they must be on leash to protect the birds and other animals that live there.
Over 80 bird species live in the 35-acre preserve, including ducks, owls, eagles, herons and a wide variety of smaller birds.
There are nearby parking lots and walkers can also enter the area from the West Dyke over a wooden bridge. The main parking area is accessed from the far west end of Westminster Highway – on the left hand side.
This is truly a vacation and fitness destination in our own “backyard.”
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