Big Trees Weekend in Stanley Park

Vancouver, BC – Journey to the top of some of the biggest trees in Stanley Park during a weekend-long celebration of trees…really BIG trees! Stanley Park Ecology Society (SPES), the BC Big Tree Committee and the Vancouver Aquarium host this June 20-21 event which offers unique insiders’ perspectives on these living giants. Catch a bird’s eye view from an arborist’s head cam as he climbs some of the Park’s biggest trees; hear tall tree tales from renowned ecologist and BC Big Tree Committee Chair, Andy MacKinnon; learn secrets of Stanley Park’s famous Hollow Tree, and witness the resiliency of the forest in a tour of the 2006 windstorm-affected areas.

“Stanley Park Ecology Society is thrilled to be offering the public so many, diverse opportunities to experience the many stunning trees in Stanley Park,” notes Celina Starnes, Public Education and Outreach Manager. “How often do you get to watch someone scale a massive old growth tree with climbing ropes and then get a live view of the tree’s top and its biologically rich micro-environment? Unless you’re an eagle, this view is a rare one.”

The Big Tree Committee administers the online BC Big Tree Registry whose mandate is “[to] identify, describe, monitor, and conserve the largest trees of each species within British Columbia, and to educate and enlist the help of its citizens in this task.” Event organizers hope the Big Trees Weekend will raise citizen’s awareness of the great trees in their own backyard and of the local and national forests in which these giants dwell.

About Stanley Park Ecology Society
For more than 26 years, SPES – an independent non-profit charity – has been a leading Park Partner in Stanley Park and Vancouver’s metropolitan region. Every year, our environmental educators connect thousands of people with nature through school and public programs, while our conservation team engages community volunteers in habitat restoration and wildlife monitoring. SPES advises the Vancouver Park Board and provides baseline information on conservation issues within the Park, including ecosystem integrity, Environmentally Sensitive Areas and Species at Risk.
www.stanleyparkecology.ca