Category Archives: Special Event

Salmon Sunday at Cariboo Dam

Chum are the most common salmon species you may see at Cariboo Dam in the fall. iStock

One of the great things about the return of the traditional fall weather – cooler temperatures and rain – is the return of spawning salmon. Join the BLPA to celebrate their return!

DATE: Sunday, October 22
TIME: 11:00 am to 2:00 pm
MEET: Cariboo Dam

Cariboo Dam, located at the east end of Burnaby Lake, is a great spot to view one of the great miracles of the natural world as salmon return from the ocean to their natal stream to spawn and complete their life cycle.

Visit our display to learn about salmon, the history of Cariboo Dam, the birds and wildlife you will see around the park during this time of year, the history of the BLPA, our activities and how to get involved!

Pick up a Waterways of Burnaby poster so you can find the streams in your neighbourhood.

We are also offering a guided nature walk using the iNaturalist app. It’s a great tool that you can download to help you identify the nature around you.

Register for the 12 pm Guided Nature walk here.

Fall is a great time to use the app! You may be able to capture sightings of organisms that can be only seen this time of year like funghi and spawning salmon. Also, the Regional Parks Snap & Share project is happening during the month of October! By registering and sharing your observations, you can be eligible to win a prize!

Register for Snap & Share here.

You can also share your salmon sightings with the Watershed Watch Salmon Society‘s annual Salmon Spawn Watch. With climate change and other pressures, the number of salmon returning to each stream every year is changing. You can help them better understand what is happening with salmon around the province with just your phone and a social media account. Learn how to take part here and be eligible for prizes!

Cariboo Dam overlooks the Brunette River to the East where the salmon have made their way from the Fraser. They will spawn in the Brunette or make their way up any of the tributaries such as Stoney Creek or Eagle Creek. Some of them will rest and continue up the beautiful fishway into Burnaby Lake.

Salmon come back to their natal stream where they were ‘born’ because they ‘know’ it is a good place to spawn; they won’t waste time looking for a stream with good habitat and other salmon. Scientists believe that salmon navigate by using the earth’s magnetic field like a compass.When they find the river they came from, they start using smell to find their way back to their home stream. They build their ‘smell memory-bank’ when they start migrating to the ocean as young fish.1

Cariboo Dam is located on Cariboo Road between Government Road and Avalon Avenue in Burnaby, BC. You can park at the lot at 9157 Avalon Avenue or look here for directions.

1 US Geological Survey

BLPA – 2023 Annual General Meeting with Guest Speaker

The Burnaby Lake Park Association invites you to join us for our 2023 Annual General Meeting (AGM) to be held at the Metro Vancouver Regional Parks Central Area Office.

The purpose of the meeting is to satisfy the requirements of the BC Societies Act by:

  1. Hearing the reports from the Board of Directors of the Burnaby Lake Park Association (BLPA)
  2. Presenting the financial statements of the BLPA
  3. Considering any Special Resolutions placed before the meeting*
  4. Presenting the results from the Nomination Committee and conduct BLPA elections*

We will begin the evening with a short meeting to conduct our AGM business before our guest speaker’s presentation. After the presentation, we will break for refreshments which will provide an opportunity for mix and mingle with your fellow stewards, nature lovers and a chance for you to meet the BLPA directors and other volunteers.

One of Burnaby Lake’s wildlife highlights of 2022 was Baby “Piper”, the Sandhill Crane. He was discovered next to Piper Spit at the end of May and we were fortunate to watch him grow over the summer, from awkward attempts to hop up on the boardwalk to flying lessons and finally stong enough to migrate with his parents.

With all the interest in Sandhill Cranes, we invited Myles Lamont to be our guest speaker.

Myles is a biologist, naturalist, and the principal of Terra Fauna Wildlife Consulting. He has worked in wildlife management and conservation with a variety of species but has a special interest in Sandhill Cranes and runs the Sandhill Crane Sightings web page for people to record their observations for his research. Along with an overview of the species, he will give an update on his surveys and population estimate of the distinct subpopulation of the Sandhill Cranes in the Fraser River Lowland.

We hope that you can join us. Click here for details, directions and to register.

*Please note, while all are welcome to attend, only members can vote.