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May 16, 2006
The Gateway to Summer
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| Happy Mother's Day to my wife Jen (Becket's mom).
She's shown here at Sycamore Pool (1 -Mile) wearing the handcrafted fine
jewelry Becket made out of beads from Ital Imports. For $8.42 he put together
a
priceless
sting of beads that might be seen next on QVC. For Mother's Day my wife wanted to have pastries at Upper Crust (who catered our wedding 9 years ago)and go for a long bike ride in the park. On top of that Becket and I talked her into going swimming at Sycamore Pool...twice in one day. In addition to being a celebration of how important Moms are, this years Mother's Day was a portal into Chico's summer for our family. |
| I figure that the first time I take a dip in the
creek the summer has begun for me(which is one reason I've never done the
polar bear club thingy). Knowing that the students are leaving
this weekend just serves to make
the
transition
complete. To me Sycamore Pool is very much what Chico's park system is about. There should be community interaction in our parks. I understand the need for quiet solitude in Upper park, as well as the importance of places like Bear Hole to our recently emancipated (from parental observation) college population. You do not see this level of interaction at other parks unless there is a special event or sports activity. I know some people are squeamish about the water quality at Sycamore Pool. But during summer months the Park Department drains and pressure washes Sycamore Pool on Thursday mornings. The dam slats are removed and the incoming creek water is diverted through an underground channel. So it's reputation for bad water quality is more one of the past than a reality of the present, the pool is probably cleaner than other areas of the creek. An inflatable dam is proposed to replace the existing one. In addition, the reconstruction of the concrete pool area is under consideration*. Last summer my son and I noticed that if you lay your belly on the moss at the bottom of the pool it feels warm. We never concluded whether the pool bottom was warm or this was just a "wind-chill" effect of the water rushing over the rest of our bodies. But I invite everyone to try it. Take the time to mix socially with all members of our community at Sycamore Pool. This is one of the last pools of its kind in the nation. And welcome to summer time Chico (yeah, I know it's still Spring, but not for me). *Total $1,600,000; $1,200,000 from Capital Grants/Reimbursements (fund 300) $400,000 from RDA (fund 352). Estimated $200,000 for environmental studies, $45,000 for design, the rest for construction, contingency, and overhead. Source 10-2005 Capital Improvements Program, City of Chico. |
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Posted by Lon at May 16, 2006 08:42 AM