Annual Hyde Creek Salmon Festival

Sunday, Nov. 18, 2018, From 11 a.m. To 3 p.m. In Port Coquitlam

Join the 5,000-plus visitors from around the Lower Mainland who come out to celebrate and witness the return of thousands of salmon back to their birthplace to lay and fertilize their eggs. Spawning time is the end of these coho and chum salmon’s lifespan and the beginning of the next generation.

This free family event provides visitors of all ages the opportunity to observe salmon up close and learn about their lifecycle through educational displays, salmon dissections and in-stream demonstrations. Come out for a day of exploring, experiencing and learning about the salmon and wildlife in a fish-bearing watershed.

Locations for the event are both the Port Coquitlam Recreation Centre at 1379 Laurier Ave. and The Hyde Creek Education Centre & Hatchery at 3636 Coast Meridian Rd., in Port Coquitlam. Both venues are linked by a short trail along Hyde Creek, which is well-marked by colourful banners.

Highlights of the festival will include:

• Fisheries and Oceans Canada displaying live salmon (up close!)
• Orphaned Wildlife Society (OWL) exhibiting a live raptor
• Salmon dissections and microscope investigations
• Home Depot build project, Search & Rescue and the David Suzuki Foundation on display, interactive Theatrix Kids Zone in the rec centre program room
• Ta Daa Lady with highly interactive songs, stories and clown turns outside in the Rainbow Dome
• Face painting, cookie decorating and crafts for the young-at-heart
• Looking for local flora and fauna on a guided nature walk
• Visit an operating salmon hatchery
• Free bicycle parking by BEST at the rec centre
• Opportunity to win exciting prizes at our raffle table
• 36 environmentally motivated exhibitors
• Food truck vendors
• Local vendors with environmentally themed hand-made treasures for sale – cash only

For more information on the work done by the Hyde Creek Watershed Society, visit their website at www.hydecreek.org. To request a group tour, e-mail volunteers@gmail.com.

Special thanks to co-sponsor City of Port Coquitlam, and to our corporate sponsors Downtown Port Coquitlam BIA, Fortis BC, Metro Ford, Port of Vancouver, Vancity Port Coquitlam and A&A Tarps.