Pacific Rim Whale Festival

The Annual Tug-O-Whale competition between the Tofino and Ucluelet District Councils took place this morning at Big Beach in Ucluelet.  Or at least it was supposed to.  The Ucluelet District Council, along with enthusiastic community participants and spectators, huddled in the rain waiting for the Tofino District Council to arrive.

The rope was strung out on the beach.  The iconic Tug-O-Whale whale was securely fastened in the middle of the rope.  Team Ucluelet waited.  Then a phone call was made from under the picnic table shelter and it was announced.

"Tofino isn't coming."

Eric Russcher, the Mayor of Ucluelet, put his hands in the air and officially claimed victory for Ucluelet over the Tug-O-Whale competition on account of Tofino's absence and automatic forfeit.  The crowd cheered, but definitely was not satisfied.  They were in their rain gear and ready to heave into some serious tug-of-war (whale)!

There was one man named John who came to represent Tofino.  One very good sport, who was later joined by a nearby family, took on the entire Ucluelet District Council and team, just to satisfy the Pacific Rim Whale Festival's need for the game.  Fortunately, his full rain gear protected him when Ucluelet dragged him by the rope across Big Beach.  Thank you John for being such a good sport!  You've done Tofino proud.

So, there you have it.  Ucluelet wins again!

 The Surfrider Foundation is a non-profit and environmental organization dedicated to the protection and enjoyment of the world's oceans, waves and beaches for all people through conservation, activism, research and education

They organize beach clean-ups, offer educational seminars on nature , conservation and preservation, run water monitoring programs, programs for kids, and beach restoration projects.

This morning the Pacific Rim chapter of the Surfrider Foundation organized and led a beach clean-up at Big Beach in Ucluelet.  Giving the beach some love was a great way to start the closing day of the Pacific Rim Whale Festival.  Despite the pouring rain the beach clean-up had a good turn up of eager garbage collectors and Big Beach is looking cleaner than ever.

For more information about what the Surfrider Foundation does in our area and how you can get involved visit http://www.surfriderprc.org

The Thornton Creek Hatchery is a salmon enhancement project on Thornton Creek that raises and releases hundreds of thousands of salmon into local waterways each year.  They're located just 10km outside of Ucluelet near Port Albion.

The Rubber Fish Race is another wacky event, traditional to the Pacific Rim Whale Festival, in efforts to raise funds and awareness for Thornton Creek Hatchery, the Pacific Rim Whale Festival, and the Ucluelet Aquarium.  Participants have had the opportunity to purchase a rubber fish at the Ucluelet Aquarium throughout the festival.  The fish are "released" into the rapids of Thornton Creek and race to the finish line.

Spectators followed the yellow fish down the creek into the finish line net.  First place won a night's stay at Black Rock Oceanfront Resort.  There were prizes for 2^nd, 3^rd, and the biggest loser, last place!  Thank you to everyone who participated.

The Thornton Creek Hatchery harvests eggs from returning salmon as they are about to spawn in the creek, or other waterways the hatchery works in.  Then they take the eggs back to the hatchery, fertilize and incubate, hatch and raise them, and then release them back into the wild. 

Last spring Thornton Creek released over 500, 000 Chinook and around 600, 000 Chum.  Coho is raised in holding tanks for a year and around 50,000 are released in April/May.  They will continue to release salmon into particular water systems until its number of returning salmon increases to a healthy level and it is able to sustain itself.  Then they move on and enhance another system.

Toquart River and Lake, Kennedy Lake, Maggie Lake, Thornton Creek and a few water systems in Clayoquot Sound as well, have been included in the Thornton Creek Hatchery salmon enhancement program.  The successful return rate of hatchery released fish is much higher than fish hatched in the wild.  1200-1600 salmon return to Thornton Creek's enhanced waterways each fall.

The Thornton Creek Hatchery is also the best place on the west coast for bear watching in September and October.  At their own risk, observers have literally seen dozens of black bears fishing in Thornton Creek as the salmon returns to spawn.   Make sure you include the Thornton Creek Hatchery in your travel plans when visiting Ucluelet this fall!

Thank you to everyone who participated in the Annual Rubber Fish Race.  For more information about the Thornton Creek Project visit www.ucluelet.travel.

If the west coast had a soundtrack it would be composed and performed by Headwater, a four piece folk roots band from Vancouver.  They packed the house at Black Rock Oceanfront Resort's Float Lounge last night.  I think that music lovers of Ucluelet have a new favourite band.

This wasn't Headwater's first performance on our pocket of Vancouver Island; in fact, they held a show at Float Lounge for Black Rock's New Year's party this year.  The memory of that night definitely brought back some of the bands local fans.

Earlier this week, as part of the Pacific Rim Whale Festival, Headwater opened for blues legend and Juno Award Winner Jim Byrnes at Barnacle Blues.  It's a soulful evening of blues, also hosted by Black Rock Oceanfront Resort, and an annual tradition of the Pacific Rim Whale Festival.  Headwater had the opportunity to play with Byrnes, and to win over a more experienced crowd.  And they did.

Shoulder to shoulder toe tapping, full on down home style dancing, pulsed in Float Lounge with the adventurous sounds of steel guitar, mandolin, stand up bass, acoustic guitar and a cameo appearance from...the banjo.

Headwater set the mood for the last weekend of the 25^th Anniversary Pacific Rim Whale Festival, and it's definitely a good one.  Thanks guys for an amazing night.

The audience was completely captivated by the deeply woven blues created by Jim Byrnes at Barnacle Blues night at Black Rock Oceanfront Resort.  Two time  Juno Award Winner, with a third nomination for "Blues Album of the Year", Jim Byrnes, with his voice changing from gritty and gruffly soulful to buttery smooth, had the room melting with every riff on his guitar.

Opening for Byrnes was Headwater.  Complete with mandolin, steel guitar, and beautiful vocal harmonies, this quartet from Vancouver wins fans quickly.  They are the nicest guys you'll ever meet and truly one of the finest acoustic roots groups on the west coast, it was a treat to have them at this event.

The third set featured Jim Byrnes accompanied by Headwater as they performed favourites from Jim Reeves and Johnny Cash.  With mandolin solos and slick slides on the steel guitar this combo group had the audience entirely entertained!

Barnacle Blues is an annual event as part of the Pacific Rim Whale Festival.  There were gourmet savoury appetizers from Black Rock Oceanfront Resort, a raffle-style auction to raise funds for the festival, and the Ucluelet Aquarium even brought a tank full of barnacle clusters and other ocean floor dwellers in lieu of the theme.

The Pacific Rim Whale Festival would like to thank Black Rock Oceanfront Resort for hosting this event, and thank you to Jim Byrnes and Headwater for making it so memorable.  You are always welcome on the west coast!

"Shaken, not stirred," he said.  And believe you me, it was.  Believe you me.

They flocked in clad in feathers, furs, and fins, totally prepared to experience the best cocktail's the west coast has to offer.  Last night local restaurants, bars, drink mixers and party fixers served it up to a thirsty crowd at the 6^th Annual Martini Migration at the Tofino Community Hall.

It was the 6^th Annual Cocktail Competition and already one of the most popular events for the Pacific Rim Whale Festival.  Restaurants and lounges competed for the coveted title of "Best Coastal Martini", served to vividly costumed patrons from decorated booths.  The gloves were off that night and competition was fierce!

Offshore Seafood Restaurant wooed us with their watermelon ginger martini.  Shelter Restaurant served from beneath cedar bows, a lime bubble delight.  The Tofino Tea Bar complemented the vodka with smooth fruity tea flavours (that went down just a little too easily); and the gentlemen from the Wickanninish Inn, dressed ever-so-classy as usual, dazzled martini lovers with their chocolate covered cherries and FLAMING cocktails that were sweeter than your favourite jube jube.  That's just to name a few!

Those in attendance were dressed in their flamboyant best.  Scanning the room my eyes filled with colourful feathers, boas, and head dresses.  A few went above and beyond with the hammerhead shark/eagle/bear ensemble, a full bodied chicken suit, or the puffy bellied jelly fish get-ups.  Everyone, without a doubt, looked fabulous!

There was live entertainment by a local band from Victoria called Quioa (koi-ah).  The high energy performance from this 5 piece band had the crowd dancing off their martinis well into the night! 

Congratulations to the Tofino Tea Bar for winning People's Choice for Favourite Martini.  The award for Judge's Favourite went to Middle Beach Lodge and Shelter Restaurant took the prize for the Best Decorated Booth for both the People's and Judge's Choice.  Congratulations everyone!

Thank you to all those who helped make the 6^th Annual Martini Migration an enormous success, once again.  Cheers Everyone!!!

Last night an alien ship, shaped like the great pyramids of our ancient Egyptian past, landed on Chesterman's Beach.  At first there was military patrol but they quickly learned to surf and were never seen again.  The aliens had small blue beads that would heat up a damp west coast house warmer and drier than a wood burning stove.  Desperate for such beads, the Chester-man and Chester-women began to trade for these blue bits of dry warmth...and the aliens wanted candy.

Okay, so that didn't actually happen.  It was one of the brilliantly entertaining pieces read at last night's 6^th Annual Literary Spout Off at the Gray Whale Deli in Ucluelet.  Writers from the Clayoquot Writer's group joined with other willing participants to read their works themed "The Dark and the Light Side of Living on the Edge."

The highlight of the evening was the spontaneous writing contest.  Attendees were given a postcard and told they had been swallowed by a whale.  If you could write and send one post card from the belly of a whale, who would it be addressed to?  And what would you say!?  We had postcards written to mothers, fathers, ex-husbands, Leonard Nimoy, and even written from the whale's perspective (in the whale's native tongue....ooooohh aaahhhh eeeeee ooooooh)

Poetry, ruminations, stories, rants, and laughter filled the Gray Whale Deli as writers from all walks of life joined together to share their craft!  This was another successful event for the 25^th Annual Pacific Rim Whale Festival.

All aboard the Lady Selkirk for Storytime at Sea!  It's not everyday we get to sing our favourite songs and listen to a magical story about whales on a boat!  This morning BC author and storyteller Rosemary Phillips led us in a playful sing-along before reading us her children's book "A Whale's Secret" with vivid illustrations by Julie Draper.

The children and their parents enjoyed hot chocolate while listening to the interactive story about Orca Whales and their journey around the world and discovery of love in the human heart.  The Pacific Rim Whale Festival Society is pleased to have Rosemary with us.

Our ocean, the waters that make up the Pacific Coast of Canada, hold the 2^nd largest fish population in the world!  These waters are home to invertebrates, fish, reptiles, and marine mammals.  Over 50 of these species in the Pacific Region of Canada are at risk, and protected under the Species at Risk Act (SARA). 

During an Educational Talk at the Wickaninnish Interpretive Centre at the Pacific Rim National Park Reserve, attendees learned how our local marine life became threatened, what government organizations are doing for recovery, and what we as individuals can do to help.

The species at risk include invertebrates like the Northern Abalone, reptiles like the Leatherback Sea Turtle, fish like the Rougheye Rockfish, and marine mammals like the Stellar Sea Lion and various species of whales.  In lieu of the Pacific Rim Whale Festival we will cover the cetaceans (whale family) and sharks at risk off our coast.

Cetaceans in BC Waters (Cetaceans are dolphins, porpoises, & whales)

We have 23 species of cetaceans that migrate through and use our waters.  Some are more common than others and out of the 23, eleven are at risk.  Among the species at risk are: the Blue whale, Fin whale, Killer whale, North Pacific Right whale, and Sei whale.

The main threat and destruction of the whale population was the whaling industry that wreaked havoc on the west coast of Vancouver Island from 1920-1960s, finally being banned in the late 1960's.  Many resident, or migrating, whale species in this area were not seen for decades afterwards.  A recovery plan was put into place and is currently underway.

The main threats to cetaceans currently are entanglements in debris and fishing gear, physical and acoustic disturbances, disease and contamination, and illegal disturbances such as boats purposely hitting the animals in the water.  All of these greatly affect prey availability for the marine mammals as well.

Government organizations are researching recovery options that include controlling acoustic thresh-holds, contaminates, amount of prey in the water, and are working enforce Whale Wise programs for both marine tourism, commercial, and recreational boaters.  They also have a marine animal response unit that allows them to save whales and turtles from entanglement and other dangers.

HOW CAN YOU HELP PROTECT THEM?

1. Know your species and learn how to identify them.  When you can identify species you can...
2. ...REPORT A SIGHTING by calling 1-866-I-SAW-ONE!  Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO), partnered with the Vancouver Aquarium, wants to know what's out there and how often the species are being sighted.  This helps in their research for protection and recovery.
3. If you see a distressed, sick, injured, or dead animal call the Marine Mammal Incident Reporting Hotline: 1-800-456-4336.
4. Be Whale Wise!  If you see whales in the water by boat, do not go any closer than 100 metres, and slow down up to 400 metres from the whale.  Be cautious and courteous, don't approach them from in front or behind, put your engine in neutral and let them pass.  Stay on the offshore side of whales when they're travelling close to shore and limit your viewing time.

Sharks at Risk (Specifically the Basking Shark)

We have 14 species of sharks that live off the west coast.  Three are listed under SARA.  They are the Tope Shark, Sixgill Shark and the Basking Shark.  The Basking Shark is an endangered species.

Basking Sharks are filter feeders, like humpback and fin whales, and can be up to 40 feet long.  It isn't uncommon to mistake a Basking Shark for a whale!  Although sadly, sighting a Basking Shark is a rare event.  There have only been 13 confirmed sightings in Canada since 1996.  In the 1950's these huge sharks could be seen by the hundreds in Barkley Sound, a foot under the water's surface, with their mouths open wide feeding.

Basking Sharks were also victims of the whaling practises that happened in the early-mid 1900's.  The main cause for their reaching endangered status is competition with commercial fisheries between the years 1944-1969.  They were constantly being caught in nets, among their salmon, and the commercial fisheries assumed they were eating the salmon from the nets.  Since Basking Sharks are baleen filter feeders, and eating salmon would be impossible for their anatomy, this wasn't the case.  The sharks were in the nets because they were eating the same bait fish and krill the salmon were.  As a result, many Basking Sharks were killed off as 'pests' and they haven't been seen commonly since.

Today the number one threat the Basking Sharks is still competition with fisheries and entanglement in nets and other debris.

HOW CAN YOU HELP PROTECT THEM?

1. Learn how to identify them.  They are 25-40 feet in length, their gill slits almost wrap around their entire head and they have an extremely large dorsal fin.  Look for the giant open mouth; you can't miss it as they swim just a foot beneath the surface.
2. Report your sighting online at www.pac.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/sharksightings.
3. If possible include photos or videos of your sighting, the date and time, the location (long/lat), how many individuals are seen, and observations of their behaviours.

We need to act!  Hundreds of Canadian wildlife species today face the risk of extinction and all have an essential role to play in the environments of the world, and their local environments. 

To learn more about what species are listed at risk visit www.SARAregistry.gc.ca.

To learn how you can become involved in helping protect species at risk, learn more about the Habitat Stewardship Program at www.cwc-scf.ec.gc.ca/hsp-pih.