A Celebration of Coastal Life! Throughout the coastal towns of Tofino & Ucluelet and around Pacific Rim National Park Reserve, the non-profit Pacific Rim Whale Festival Society is preparing to welcome whales and visitors alike to the 24th Annual Pacific Rim Whale Festival. Community locals claim it’s an all-out Celebration of Coastal Life that’s determined to earn its gold star as a well-worthy roadtrip.
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Throughout the coastal towns of Tofino & Ucluelet and around Pacific Rim National Park Reserve, the non-profit Pacific Rim Whale Festival Society is preparing to welcome whales and visitors alike to the 24th Annual Pacific Rim Whale Festival. Community locals claim it’s an all-out Celebration of Coastal Life that’s determined to earn its gold star as a well-worthy roadtrip.
Fortunately for us, as west-coasters, we are on the doorstep of many migratory corridors that offer the opportunity to witness the presence of an array of whales, dolphins and porpoises, as well as sea lions, seabirds and other wonders among them. On Mother Nature’s annual agenda, we get to witness the migration of the world’s largest population of California grey whales along our west-coast waters. We’re talking upwards of 20,000 strong, making their way from the warm calving and breeding lagoon waters off of the Baja, headed toward the cold and nutrient-rich waters of the Arctic north: and they’re often within viewing distance of shore. More than a passing fancy for these majestic behemoths has generated the evolution of countless opportunities to explore their underwater world. The successes of the whale watching industry that promotes encounters and tourism with whales is ever-present, up and down the BC coast, and has led to a self- and government-monitored long list of regulations to ensure ethical viewing practices. This represents a real turning of the tide in attitude. It wasn’t all that long ago when whales were hunted along the Vancouver Island coast: when humans looked toward a spout spotted on the horizon wondering how many barrels of oil that whale would produce. We’ve come a long way to arrive, just a handful of decades later, to more empathetic queries such as ‘Where do they live? How do they breathe? What do they eat?’ At the end of the day, it’s the connection and understanding that we’re developing with whales that have brought about a major change in the kind of interaction we seek with them. Now, with their population back at what scientists believe to be pre-whaling numbers, they are a true conservation success story that has come from the brink of extinction to a recovered healthy population. To contribute to an evidently necessary learning curve on the changing state of the sea and the creatures who live within its depth, the Whale Festival will be including a series entitled Sea Change. It’s a presentation series of dynamic speakers and documentary films relating to how human factors are changing the Earth’s oceans, and how these conditions will affect human communities as well as the entire ocean system. Audiences will be treated to talks on some of the latest research and developments in climate and ocean sciences, with information regarding trends in conservation and environmental education. The aim is to inspire and enable solutions. Keeping in mind that it’s not everyone’s cup of tea to take up a sea-faring adventure and be confronted with the enormity and charm of a gray whale, the Whale Festival offers up a varied platter of over seventy-five events, many free of charge, that aim to educate, inspire, and raise the spirits of the young and young-at-heart. Expect live music, culinary competitions, children’s fun-fairs, art and hands-on education. Interpretive walks and informative talks take you exploring the coastal temperate rainforest, hunting in tidepools on stretches of sandy beach, up to your elbows with jellyfish and eye-to-eye with octopi in the Ucluelet Aquarium. Find yourself rubbing elbows with renowned authors in local cafés. Weave a cedar basket with Nuu-Chah-Nulth elders. Join a researcher for a day-trip at sea with migrating grey whales. Tour to Hot Springs Cove with a local biologist. Sink into a seat for the screening of a film with your family. Admire local artists in action. Fill your ears with the stories of Roy Henry Vickers. Or, count spouts while walking the Wild Pacific Trail. It’s an opportunity to experience a unique and culturally powerful coastal tradition that conveniently corresponds with many Van Isle school districts’ Spring Break!
Remarkably, the Whale Festival is generated almost entirely by volunteers. What results is a group synergy unlike any other event on the West Coast! The Festival Society welcomes contributors & volunteers from near and far, including the annual boat-load of miscellaneous Islanders that make the trip to take part. For some, it’s an annual tradition to migrate out for the festivities to repeat some classic calendar features, and to find out what creative new ideas will be part of the line-up. The Whale Festival is an extraordinary collaboration where you’re invited to beef up your learning curve, but it’s also a great example of west coast spirit, hospitality, sense of community and culture that’s truly unique to this part of Canada. Come! Be hosted by the wild West Coast! For more info, including a growing calendar of events, visit: www.pacificrimwhalefestival.com
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Some events already on the calendar for March 4-14, 2010 include:
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