Every project must be accessible to the public, and a Metro grant can foot the bill for a maximum of one-third of the total cost. Recipients typically buy land, restore it, improve neighborhood livability or fuel an urban transformation – and this year’s six projects represent all those categories. Recipients will expand Lily K. Johnson Park in Beaverton and the Baltimore Woods corridor in North Portland, develop Cully Park in Northeast Portland and Nadaka Nature Park in Gresham, replace a stone bridge at Tryon Creek State Park and restore a creek in central Beaverton.

Inspired by Ice Age floods that scoured the landscape, the Tonquin Trail moves towards the future this summer as Metro and its partners finalize the blueprint for a signature pathway that will connect Tualatin, Sherwood and Wilsonville.

Take a creaky barge in Camas, a $10 bill, a maelstrom of red tape and a Metro-owned boat dock near Portland Airport, and what do you get?

It's starting to look like a hefty cleanup tab for the Portland region's taxpayers.

Marie Dahlstrom, Executive Director of Familias en Accion, helps promote health and well being for Latino families in Portland and Southwest Washington. But, Marie doesn’t just work to help other Latinos live healthier and happier lives, she embraces vitality with the way she lives her own life. How does she do that? On two feet.

And sleepy Toad said to Frog, "Come back again and wake me up at about half past May." Don't be like Toad; embrace April's last showers and May's new flowers. Follow the links below for more information about free and low-cost events around the metro area.

If you're a trails fanatic, make the trek to Metro from 1 to 3 p.m. Wednesday, April 25 for the second annual Regional Trails Fair. You'll learn the latest news about projects across the region, with more than 25 booths staffed by local trails partners.

Temperatures are anticipated to climb into the high 60s this weekend, which is perfect weather to step outside. Catch some rays as you take a hike with Metro and Kaiser Permanente's Walk There! iPhone app.

Justin Patterson, director of Metro's Parks and Property Stewardship Program, said the campground will have about 10 fewer spots than it did last year, before yet another year of flooding on the Sandy wiped out nearly a quarter mile of riverbank near the campground. Part of the amphitheater was lost in January’s flooding, and the bank was swept out so close to the campground’s main road and restroom that both had to be removed.

The annual candy egg hunt returns to Blue Lake Regional Park on April 7, 2012

While you are there, visit the natural discovery garden to smell the flowers, touch the leaves and gather ideas to make your yard pesticide-free, safe and fun for kids, pets, songbirds, lakes and streams. People of all ages can explore an active worm bin, dig for "fossils," discover, rub and sniff plants, find the softest leaves, and see what wildlife have to say about natural gardening.