by Sharon Shultz, 7 May 2022 The Misty Isles, her Captain Jonas Fineman and Naturalist George Sirk picked us up at the Lund Marina and took us on a lovely day trip to Mitlenatch Island. Twenty seven (27) species of birds were spotted during our trip. The camas, monkey flowers and sea blush were in full … Continue reading Mitlenatch (aboard the Misty Isles)

by Tom Koleszar, 1 May 2022 Fifteen of us gathered at the Inland Lake parking area to begin to get to know the mosses of this area with trip leader Rod Tysdal.  Rod is a retired forester, and spent the last few months delving into the world of mosses – buying new books and dusting … Continue reading Mrs and Mr Moss – getting to know them

by Andrew Bryant, 30 Apr 2022 Nine of us gathered at the Italian Hall to marvel at the wonders of spring migration – with an expert. Iwan van Veen was at the top of his game and I think we had 20+ species before leaving the parking lot.  He kept careful track and by days end … Continue reading Birding by Ear (Part XI)

by David Bedry, 17 October 2021 We met at Lang creek on a drizzly morning where we were met by Phil and Tesarlatwo of the hatchery’s staff.  With our overnight down pour they had been up all night.  They had been monitoring the rising creek levels and keeping the water intake for the building free … Continue reading Lang Bay Hatchery and Nature Garden

by Winnie Ferrier, 24 August 2021 Eleven of us arrived at 10:00 am in Lund to meet Misty Isles for a day on Mitlenatch.  The day was sunny and the ocean calm. After a safety talk by Jonas, our skipper, we were underway.  As we journeyed we were given archeological and historical facts of Mitlenatch by … Continue reading Mitlenatch day-trip

by Tom Koleszar, 14 August 2021 After being rained out last week, we got out today.  The wildfire smoke threatened, but we were largely clear in the mountains further from the coast. Twenty members were landed by helicopter at 1660 metres elevation in the meadows between Ironface Peak and Mount Alfred.  The weather was sunny and … Continue reading Alpine Adventure #4 – Ironface

by Tom Koleszar, 24 July 2021 On a nice sunny day, 9 naturalists set sail with Captain Jonas and Naturalist George Sirk on the Misty Isles for a tour of the Hernando Reefs on a very low tide. On the way they passed by Major Rock with all its bird and marine life.  Many different species … Continue reading Misty Isles low tide trip

by Tom Koleszar, 18 July 2021 After being postponed due to heat two weeks ago, we finally got to go on our beach field trip on Sunday.  The tide was nice and low, and the day warm and sunny (but not too hot!) Michael Stewart lead us on a walk along the beach at Lang Bay, … Continue reading Life’s a beach

by Pat Karis, 13 June 2021 Eight Malaspina Naturalists arrived at Lund to take a boat trip to Desolation Sound.  Our captain ”extra-ordinairre” Jonas shared with us that he had left Whale Town on Cortez Island, that morning, 2 and a half hours prior to arriving in Lund…at 9:45. After a few minutes of instruction around … Continue reading Desolation Sound

by Tom Koleszar, 5 June 2021 On Saturday eight intrepid members of the Naturalist Club braved the weather to explore the world of ferns with trip leader Rod Tysdal. Rod is a retired forester, and he dusted off a lot of his old knowledge – and even bought a new book – to prepare for this … Continue reading Fun with ferns

by Andrew Bryant, 8 May 2021 Some field-trips will be remembered for being “pre COVID” and some will be remembered as being “post COVID”.   And frankly, birds don’t care. Accordingly, Pierre and I took 8 members over 7 km of uneven terrain and had a great day over an area formerly known as the “Wildwood … Continue reading Birding by Ear – Part X

by Nancy Pezel, 27 Sep 2020 After about an hour’s drive up logging roads, 13 members enjoyed a leisurely walk along a newly constructed portion of the Sunshine Coast Trail (SCT) just north of March Lake.  The overcast skies provided perfect conditions for hiking and photography. After walking approximately 15 m off an existing logging road, … Continue reading March Lake old-growth

by Tom Koleszar, 9 Aug 2020 On Sunday, August 9 – one day later than planned due to inclement weather – twenty Malaspina Naturalists enjoyed a helicopter field trip to the alpine country of the South Powell Divide.  Flying from the airport and from a staging area a few kilometers past the head of Goat Lake, … Continue reading Alpine Adventure

by Heather Harbord, 11 Jul 2020 Brandishing our masks, six members boarded Misty Isles at Lund for a day trip to Desolation Sound.  Two of the 8 passengers mandated by Covid-19 regulations had got sick the day before and were unable to come. A steady rain started but after several months locked down at home … Continue reading Desolation Sound

by Paul Miniato, 6 Oct 2019 A warm sun pushed through the clouds as about 15 of us began our tour of the Hatchery.  David Bedry explained how the operation of the facility meshed with the lifecycle of the salmon. Needing different water temperatures, the various species – except Sockeye, which can’t spawn in this watershed … Continue reading Lang Creek Fish Hatchery and Native Plant Garden

by Nancy Pezel 29 Sept 2019 Sixteen members met at Squirrel Crossing on this perfect fall day to learn about mushrooms.  After handing out an introduction to mushrooms and showing us a stack of reference books she suggested to help with identification, Izi Loveluck guided us up a loop trail to point out examples of a … Continue reading Mushroom forage – 2019

by Pat Karis 20 July 2019 On Saturday ten of  us caught the early ferry to Comox in search of Vancouver Island marmots (Marmota vancouverensis) on Mount Washington. We rode the chair lift to the top of the mountain, where club members were treated to an informative talk on the marmot by Dr. Andrew Bryant, who … Continue reading Marmots on Mt Washington

by Nancy Pezel 13 July 2019 As Nadia brought us up alongside the Misty Isles in the dingy, what a surprise to find Mike would be our captain for the day!  With the aid of his charts, Mike explained about the currents, tides, deep waters, and warm fresh surface waters that make Desolation Sound such a … Continue reading Desolation Sound

by Tom Koleszar 22 Jun 2019 Its 0900 Saturday morning and 12 intrepid naturalists embark on the Catwalker for an all day trip up Powell Lake to learn about the lake and enjoy the beautiful scenery!  We made 4 stops on the way up to the head, including one at Captain Byrne’s cabin at Olsens Landing … Continue reading Powell Lake – its natural and not-so-natural history

by Nancy Pezel 25 May 2019 We left the rain behind us as we drove towards Lund, patches of blue sky amongst the clouds promised good weather on our adventure.  After fueling up on cinnamon buns and coffees we took the short water taxi ride to Savary Island.  From the wharf we walked a few kilometers … Continue reading In search of the Contorted-pod Evening Primrose

by Pierre Geoffray 18 May 2019 A group of ten enthusiastic members practiced our “ear-birding” skills along the trails of Wildwood Bluffs.  We started at the Italian Hall in second growth forest, where a variety of birds were singing, among them many Yellow Warblers and Black-headed Grosbeaks and the first Swainson’s Thrush of the year. Next … Continue reading Birding by Ear Part IX

by Duane Sept, 4 May 2019 Twelve keen adventurers boarded the Misty Isles at Lund for a day trip to Mitlenatch Island Nature Provincial Park.  The owner/operator Jonas Fineman was our trusty captain and our guide was guide George Sirk.  George was the original naturalist for Mitlenatch in 1969 and he returned again in 1971. After … Continue reading Mitlenatch 2019

by Andrew Bryant, 27 Apr 2019 Well, we’ve talked about doing this trip for years – and finally did it.  Thirteen of us took the Saltery Bay ferry and shuttled to the trailhead using “Tom’s Uber” .  We walked a couple of km along a well-maintained trail to Ambrose Lake Ecological Reserve – and then the … Continue reading Ambrose Lake Ecological Reserve

by Nancy Pezel, 23 Feb 2019 After a few sleepless nights worrying about the snowy weather forecast for the day of this trip, 12 of our members were happy to board the Sunshine Coast Tours boat at Saltery Bay under high overcast skies! As we travelled up Jervis inlet, one of the deepest inlets of the … Continue reading Princess Louisa Inlet and Chatterbox Falls

by Tom Koleszar, 19 Jan 2019 On a cool Saturday morning, 14 naturalists lead by Rod Tysdal gathered at the Willingdon Beach Trail (the old Michigan & Puget Sound railroad grade) for a leisurely walk up the trail. Along the way we examined much of the old logging equipment displayed there.  Rod is very knowledgeable with … Continue reading Beach Trail Forest History

by Andrew Bryant, 10 Nov. 2018 Fifteen of us carpooled our way out to one of Powell River’s nicest remaining natural areas – the Stillwater Bluffs. Ably led by long-time resident, climber, and friend-of-the-bluffs Jason Addy, the morning began with unsettled November weather…with just a few drops of rain and some hints of sunshine peaking through … Continue reading Return to Stillwater Bluffs

by Cindy Dalcourt, 5 Nov. 2018 28 Members made their way to the Hatchery this morning where we met up with Lee George, the Hatchery manager. There were a lot of fish, both dead and alive in the river as well as in the spawning channel and the fish ladder. We did not get to … Continue reading Tla’amin Fish Hatchery Tour

by Michael Stewart, 13 Oct. It was a beautiful morning as we travelled by ferry to Earls Cove. From there, we went to the southern area of Pender Harbour and had a short but amazing hike along the ocean in Francis Point Provincial Park.  We did some bird watching and found a few mushrooms in … Continue reading Mushroom Festival at Madeira Park

by Tom Koleszar, 18 August 2018. Twenty of us recently enjoyed a helicopter trip into our local alpine country.  Flying from the airport and from a staging area near Goat Lake, we spent the day on a ridge top between Diane and Joan Lakes, near Mt Baldy.  It was a great day as we were … Continue reading Alpine Adventure – Take 20

by Lois Bridger, 28 July 2018. Getting to the old-growth took some doing! There were 29 of us in a convoy of vehicles driving up to an elevation of 900 metres.  Nancy and Tom led the hike along part of the Sunshine Coast Trail.  We were fortunate to also have a few knowledgeable foresters along … Continue reading Elephant Lake old-growth