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FIELD TRIPS

• FIELD TRIP OPTIONS
• ADDITIONAL FIELD TRIP OPTIONS

All field trips require a minimum number of participants and are subject to cancellation depending upon the registration numbers. Registration is first come, first served, with full payment. Registrations must be received by 15 April 1997. If a field trip is cancelled, all registrants will be notified prior to the conference. Applicable refunds will be made after the conference. Costs shown are per person, unless otherwise indicated. The UVic Outdoors Club rents camping gear. Availability is limited. Contact Robert MacDonald, Telephone (250) 472-1808.

FIELD TRIP OPTIONS

Bamfield Marine Station and the Outer Coast

4-6 June or 10-12 June. Visit the laboratories of Bamfield Marine Station, a research and educational facility owned and operated by the five major western Canadian Universities, located in the remote fishing community of Bamfield. Explore the ecology of the wild outer coast of Vancouver Island. This expedition will include visits to various habitats and marine protected areas, including sandy and rocky beaches and temperate rainforest, as well as benthic ocean sampling on board our research vessel. Get a close-up look at Northeastern Pacific seabirds and marine mammals. Traditional ecological knowledge of the Nuu-cha-nulth people will be integrated with western science. Children ages 10 and up welcome. Minimum 15 participants. $445CDN + GST (includes transportation, all meals, and accommodation).

Is This View For You?

6 June or 10 June, 8:30 A.M. - 12:30 P.M. or 1:00 - 4:30 P.M. High canopy explorations: discoveries in an unknown frontier. See the world from the top of 60 metre ancient Douglas Fir trees. These trees are part of a fixed canopy access station that allows entomologists at UVic to study and observe life in the tree tops. You will be hoisted more than 30 metres into the canopy where you can step off onto platforms and walk between the trees on a series of ladders and burma bridges. The group will be accompanied by two professional climbers and by a naturalist with knowledge of the local flora, fauna, and research being conducted in this area. The area, composed of dry coastal old-growth Douglas fir forests and rolling Garry Oak meadows, is one of last remaining forests of this kind on southern Vancouver Island. Limited to 6 people per trip. Bring pants, sturdy shoes or boots, and light rain gear. Minimum age 19. Not for those with a fear of heights. $65CDN + GST (includes transportation and snack).

Clayoquot Sound

10-13 June. Depart UVic by bus and travel across Vancouver Island to the west coast village of Tofino. From there, proceed by water taxi to the village of Ahousaht. Over the next two days, two groups of eight people will alternate between a boat trip into the local waters to search for gray whales and other marine life and a day hike in the temperate coastal forest. Guides will include locally experienced scientists and a First Nations interpreter. Returns to Victoria on the evening of 13 June. Bring personal equipment, warm clothing, a waterproof jacket, UV filter sunglasses, hiking boots, daypack, and sleeping bag. Safety gear will be available for the boat trip. Limited to 16 participants. Participants responsible for two lunches en route. $445CDN + GST (includes transportation, meals, snacks, and accommodation).

Vancouver Island Marmot

10 June, 5:00 A.M. - 3:30 P.M. Among the high interior mountains of Vancouver Island lives one of the world's rarest mammals, the Vancouver Island marmot (Marmota vancouverensis). The Vancouver Island marmot is distinct from other marmot species; the entire population currently numbers fewer than 200 individuals. M. vancouverensis is the subject of an ambitious recovery program. Join Andrew Bryant, principal researcher for the Marmot Recovery team, to explore the haunts and habitats of this unique creature. Limited to 15 persons. $70CDN + GST (includes transportation, breakfast, snack, and lunch). For additional background, visit the marmot website at http://www.islandnet.com/marmot/homepage.html.

Environmental Interpretation Centres on Vancouver Island

10 June, 9:00 A.M. - 5:00 P.M. Explore terrestrial, freshwater, and marine education centres north of Victoria. Goldstream Park includes trails through old growth forest, a small estuary, and the Freeman King Visitor Centre, which specializes in salmon ecology and terrestrial wildlife. The Marine Ecology Station features aquaria representing typical BC marine habitats. The Fresh Water Ecocentre specializes in local stream habitats and the history of man's activities in these habitats. Children ages 6 and up welcome. Bring warm clothes and rain gear. Participants will responsible for lunch in Cowichan Bay. $36CDN + GST (includes transportation, centre fees, and snack).

San Juan Ridge Field Trip

10 June, 8:00 A.M. - 9:30 P.M. Hike the San Juan Ridge wildflower and upland forest, then end your day with gourmet bioregional cuisine. The group will be accompanied by two ethnobotanists, one botanist, and guides from the Sooke Outdoors Club. Continue on to Jordan River and to trailhead, with stops at peat bog and second-growth forests en route. Hike through old growth yellow-cedar and amabilis fir forest to spectacular wildflower meadows, featuring a population of Erythronium montanum, a rare species in BC. Then explore Roosevelt elk habitat and view the San Juan River Valley. Return to Sooke Harbour House for a gourmet dinner featuring edible flower salads and local organic produce and seafood. Limited to 20 participants. Bring cameras, warm clothes, and waterproof footwear. $115CDN (includes transportation, lunch, snack, and dinner; alcohol not included).

Botanical Beach: Intertidal Insights

10 June, 8:00 A.M. - 5:00 P.M. Discover the fascinating marine world of Botanical Beach Provincial Park, located near Port Renfrew on the west coast of Vancouver Island. Royal BC Museum marine biologists escort you into a world overflowing with marine life. Sea anemones, sea urchins, surf grass, sea stars, goose-necked barnacles, and chitons live in an exquisite natural setting. Enjoy fresh ocean air, pounding Pacific surf, and majestic coastal rainforest. Bring warm clothes, rainwear, sunscreen, hiking or rubber boots with good treads, and, if you wish, binoculars, cameras, and filters for seeing into the tide pools. This excursion includes a 20-minute walk to the beach along a hiking trail, and walking along uneven and/or steep gravelled roads, trails, rocky beaches, and headlands. Limited to 28 participants. $87CDN (includes transportation, picnic lunch, and snack).

All Sorts of Bugs

10 June, 9:45 A.M. - 3:00 P.M. A great trip for families! The Royal BC Museum's collections contain about 200,000 insect specimens, most from British Columbia. We estimate that only half of the species of insects that live in our province have been recorded. Insects are all around us, but it's not always easy to go out and find just what you're looking for. On this tour, we'll visit a pond in the forest, which is always a good place to see a wide variety of insects. Dragonflies will be easy to see, but we'll also find dragonfly larvae deep in the water, hunting their aquatic prey. Water bugs abound in this habitat; we'll catch backswimmers and, if we're really lucky, a water scorpion. There'll be various water beetles, mayfly and midge larvae, and probably some surprises! In the woods we may see ground beetles and insect relatives such as millipedes and centipedes. Limited to 14 participants. Cost for one adult with one child is $130CDN (includes transportation, collection materials, resource guide, lunch, and snack).

Birding & General Natural History Trip to Local Parks

10 June, 5:30 A.M. - noon. Leave UVic with your naturalist guide and coffee and muffins to get you going. First stop is Francis-King Regional Park where you'll stroll through the beautiful Douglas-fir woodland and hear the morning bird songs of a west coast forest. The second stop is the impressive old-growth western redcedar and Douglas-fir streamside forest of Goldstream Provincial Park. The group will have a cooked outdoor breakfast and visit the Nature Centre located on the edge of the Goldstream estuary at the head of Saanich Inlet. After breakfast climb up the short but steep trail to the top of Mount Finlayson, through sunny rock gardens and oak woodlands to the spectacular viewpoint at the top. Mount Finlayson is a hill, not a mountain (415 vertical metres), and participants need to be capable of walking over rough ground. Bring good walking footwear, layered clothing, rain gear if necessary, and binoculars. Limited to 14 participants. Children ages 6 and up welcome. $50CDN + GST (includes transportation, breakfast, and snack).

Muir Creek: Intertidal Life & Fossil Exploration

11 June, 10:00 A.M. - 5:00 P.M. The Muir Creek site is situated approximately 20 minutes past the town of Sooke where Muir Creek empties into Juan de Fuca Strait. It is one of the few accessible spots where one can see marine fossils next to their living descendants. The fossil beds are part of the Sooke Formation deposited along the coastline of Vancouver Island. Clams, snails, and barnacles are common. On the adjacent beach the lush marine life is typical of a semi-exposed rocky coastline, with aggregating anemones, purple urchins, whelks, and nudibranchs. If you are lucky, you may see some rarer species such as a turtle crab or snail fish. Join a marine biologist and a botanist/geologist for this marine treasure hunt. The excursion includes walking along trails, rocky beaches, and headlands. Limited to 28 participants. $87CDN (includes transportation, lunch, and snack).

Gulf Island Escape

11 June 7:30 A.M. -12 June 8:00 P.M. Kayaking trip to the Gulf Island group, considered one of the premier kayaking destinations in the world! We leave UVic for the ferry terminal and a thirty minute sail to Fulford Harbour on Saltspring Island. Outfitter staff from Saltspring Kayaking will meet the group with kayaks and necessary equipment. All gear will be taken by motor launch to the campsite. You will kayak from Fulford Harbour and spend the day exploring marine parks/sanctuaries among the islands that offer excellent opportunities to observe coastal fauna and flora. Seals, bald eagles, and river otters are commonly seen en route with occasional sitings of porpoises. No paddling experience required; fully qualified local guide/instructors will be with the group. You should be able to swim and be moderately fit. Wilderness camping experience is handy but not essential. Further details provided upon registration. Limited to 24 people, must be 19 years of age. $75CDN non-refundable deposit included in registration fee. $270CDN + GST (includes transportation, ferry fare, all meals, snacks, kayaks and related equipment, and camping equipment).

ADDITIONAL FIELD TRIP OPTIONS

The Organizing Committee has arranged with a commercial river rafting company, Canadian River Expeditions, to offer exclusive trips for conference delegates, at reduced rates, to two of Canada's most spectacular areas. Canadian River Expeditions was the first remote-area, commercial rafting company in Canada and pioneered the two routes offered. For more information or to make reservations, contact Canadian River Expeditions directly at Telephone (800) 898-7238, FAX (604) 938-6621, email canriver@whistler.net. Upon request, a more comprehensive description of each trip will be provided. Identify yourself as a SCB meeting attendee. Both trips have limited seating, so book early.

Chilcotin-Fraser

Starting from UVic on 10 June, you will travel north on Vancouver Island to Campbell River and board a boat that will take you to a campsite in one of BC's famous fiords. The last time I did this trip we had killer whales with us for much of the way and arrived at the campsite to be greeted by a coastal grizzly. The next day a chartered float plane will fly you over the highest mountains of BC's coastal range to the superb wilderness area of Chilco Lake. From there you will make your way down the Chilco, Chilcotin, and Fraser Rivers by raft. In doing so, you will pass from the coastal temperate rain forest to the alpine meadows of Chilco Lake and down to the semi-desert of the BC interior. This trip provides an excellent cross-section of the main biogeoclimatic zones of southern BC with associated fauna. $2196CDN + 7%GST (includes transportation, accommodation, and meals).

Alsek River

This river dissects what is apparently the largest World Heritage Site in the world, the St. Elias - Kluane-Tatshenshini, and is a spectacular wilderness journey. You will have to book a flight to Whitehorse (Yukon) and meet there on the night of 10 June. From there you will travel to the Alsek headwaters in Kluane National Park. The Alsek runs through rugged terrain skirting several glaciers. Wildlife is abundant with very high grizzly populations (we saw 17 on the last trip). A couple of layover days allow plenty of time for hiking. You will be picked up by a chartered plane from the river on 18 June and flown back to Whitehorse. $2320CDN + 7%GST (does not include airfare to and from Whitehorse, nor Whitehorse hotel).

Coastal Connections Guided Nature Adventures offers half- and full-day outings for adults and children. Visit their website at http://www.octonet.com/~coastal/ for some of the trips available for delegates. For SCB delegates, prices will be discounted 15% from those shown on the their webpage. For further information email coastal@octonet.com or telephone (800) 840-4453.

OTHER ACTIVITIES

The Organizing Committee has compiled a list of activities and contact numbers for delegate companions. Information will be available at the registration desk. Activities include scuba diving, whale watching, Butchart Gardens, Chinatown tour, Royal BC Museum, and more. Check the conference web site at http://office.geog.uvic.ca/dept/announce/scb_page.html.

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