Great Blue Heron Nature Reserve Society

Great Blue Heron Nature Reserve Society This is Stó:lō Téméxw. The Great Blue Heron is one of the most distinctive North American birds.

We respectfully acknowledge that the Great Blue Heron Nature Reserve is located on the shared traditional, unceded & ancestral territory of the The’wá:lí people, who are part of the Ts’elxwéyeqw Tribe, and the Semá:th Tribe. However, the Pacific Great Blue Herons do not migrate and depend entirely on wetland habitat in the Lower Mainland and on Vancouver Island for their survival. The Pacific Great Blue Heron is a Species at Risk and requires our significant conservation efforts to ensure the long-term viability of its population. It is fitting that the Great Blue Heron Nature Reserve takes its name from this bird, for on the south-western portion of the Reserve is one of the largest heron nesting colonies in the Lower Mainland. With over 100 nests, the colony is active from March through July of each year. We respectfully acknowledge that the Great Blue Heron Nature Reserve is located on the shared traditional, unceded & ancestral territory of the The’wá:lí people, who are part of the Ts'elxewyeqw Tribe, and the Semá:th Tribe. We acknowledge the ongoing negative effects of colonialism on all Sto:lo peoples and seek to work side by side with those who looked after the land before us, incorporating traditional knowledge into the ways we are caring for this land through conservation and education.

Enjoy this peek into the world of our conservation crew! 🌿Looking to get involved? We are always looking for more volunt...
09/11/2026

Enjoy this peek into the world of our conservation crew! 🌿

Looking to get involved? We are always looking for more volunteer help, we’ll be doing a lot of planting of native species this fall, email [email protected] to be added to our conservation volunteer email list!

Have you thought about taking one of our art workshops, but not entirely certain? Give it a try this weekend as there is...
09/08/2026

Have you thought about taking one of our art workshops, but not entirely certain? Give it a try this weekend as there is still lots of space in the Sunset Landscape Workshop with John Le Flock this Saturday (the 12th of September), and a steal at only $40 for all materials, three hours of instruction, and a finished canvas to take home. What do previous attendees think?

He's the best. Love his workshops. Wish there were more. - Heather Brown

I have been attending art with John for a few years now. My art has improved so much. He is helpful, kind and his instruction is the best. - Susan Walker

Time was taken to slowly transition from one layer and technique to another. John doing a live painting with us was helpful and giving us time to figure out our grounding and how we wanted to maneuver the painting. It was helpful that he came around and assisted as well. The 3 hours was just enough time and by no means too long-glad it wasn't any shorter. Thank you for also making it age flexible so we could do it as a family event and enjoy across the board. - Esther Priyanka

I enjoy the variety of ages that attend the classes. John is a great teacher and share his tricks readily. The class has a great pace and fun and very interesting. - Audrey Wiens

Register here to join in the fun from 10 to 1 this Saturday, the 12th of September: https://www.chilliwackblueheron.com/workshops/art-and-yoga-workshops/

While summer is drawing to a close, we continue to have lots of offerings for the community at the Great Blue Heron Nat...
09/08/2026

While summer is drawing to a close, we continue to have lots of offerings for the community at the Great Blue Heron Nature Reserve:

UPCOMING EVENTS

September 12th, 10:00am - 1:00pm, $40
Sunset Landscape Painting Workshop with John Le flock
Join our art instructor John Le Flock this summer for an acrylic sunset landscape painting workshop that's fun for the whole family! Meet at the discovery annex (classroom).

September 26th, 10:00am - 11:00am, FREE
Plant Identification Walk with Deb Ego
Join us for a free plant walk! Learn about plant identification native plants and their relationships to the creatures that call the heron reserve home. Meet in front of the Interpretive Centre.

September 27th, 11:00am - 2:00pm, FREE
National Day for Truth and Reconciliation Day Event with Gracie Kelly
Register in advance for a salmon leather workshop with Jay Peachy. In this hands-on workshop each participant will gain some understanding about the lifecycle of salmon, ecology and culture. Each participant will learn the basic steps of making fish leather (de-scaling, tanning and softening), which is usually a multi-day process. Each participant will craft their fish leather to take home. This will be followed by a shared lunch and reading of Indigenous knowledge keepers Gracie Kelly’s play, “It’s Not Just a Rock” which acknowledges the importance of Indigenous teachings and our connection to the divine beauty of our natural surroundings Meet at the discovery annex (classroom).

September 28th, 1:00 - 4:00pm, $340 for 8 weekly sessions
First day of Fall Homeschool
Homeschool session combine art and outdoor education and run for 8 weeks on Mondays from 1pm to 4pm (September 28 through November 23rd)

October 10th, 17th, 24th, 10:00am - 12:00pm, $90
3 Part Series: Watercolour Bird
Join John for this 3-part series learning all about watercolour techniques, with a focus on birds. Meet at the discovery annex (classroom).

Event reminder: Our Town, Our Trees - Central Community Park Walk, August 26th, $10, 7:00pm - 8:00pm. Retired forester b...
08/19/2026

Event reminder: Our Town, Our Trees - Central Community Park Walk, August 26th, $10, 7:00pm - 8:00pm. Retired forester but still a treehugger, Debora Soutar leads strolls around Chilliwack neighbourhoods to share highlights of our urban forest, including Heritage Trees, and unusual specimens.

Register here: https://book.peek.com/s/2a437f13-a7f3-4705-8ff9-c61c0e3c9119/Vzve6?fbclid=IwY2xjawTyuJBwZG9mAWV4dG4DYWVtAjEwAGJyaWQRMTJXRkNxUzB5V0VEMmxzbjNzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEeA4JVgvKUNNThpz5ANkX2Oy8iINb0ujBeHqDaaoSLPRdkRqiC1DWEZjHtRXM_aem_XrhEE_gz9_ihOC40vEV7zg

All funds go directly to conservation work at the GBHNR!

08/13/2026

We are excited to begin our habitat remediation project on the Vedder Bird Blind Channel! The first part of our project is a fish salvage, which involves removing all of the fish from our isolated site and moving them to a safer location. With the fish salvage coming to an end, we are now able to begin working in the stream without fear of hurting any of our native critters. We were able to salvage over 25 juvenile Coho salmon from the stream, leaving us hopeful that our work restoring their habitat will benefit many more Coho during their spawning season and provide a refuge for future generations. Thank you to Connor from DFO for his help this week with the salvage and project organization!

Hi folks, we'd like to let everyone know that we are currently undertaking a fish salvage as part of a larger stream rem...
08/13/2026

Hi folks, we'd like to let everyone know that we are currently undertaking a fish salvage as part of a larger stream remediation project here at the the GBHNR. That includes using metal mesh fencing and fabric to block fish from entering the system, as well as using a combination of netting and trapping to remove as many fish as we can before the instream machinery work begins. We ask that all traps and exclusion measures be left alone as they are essential to our project's success. There has been some evidence of tampering, but thankfully failsafes were in place to prevent any real harm.

We will also have barricades up during the machine work starting next week, so we ask that all barricades and signage are respected to keep everyone safe. We have chosen not to completely close the trails nearest to the sight so people can still enjoy them; but the gates may be closed if the barricades aren't respected.

Thank you for your patience!

ATTENTION: Partial trail closures next week near classroom for salmon spawning restoration project. Hi all, we are start...
08/12/2026

ATTENTION: Partial trail closures next week near classroom for salmon spawning restoration project.

Hi all, we are starting an exciting restoration project next week on the channel beside the classroom (discovery annex). The project will involve deepening the channel, adding new spawning gravel and large woody debris and riparian restoration work - removing invasive blackberry and planting native plants in the fall!

August 17 - 21: The instream machinery work will be taking place, so the trails near the project site will be closed for safety. The heron colony and discovery trails will be partially closed, you will not be able to complete the loop, but they will still be accessible from the centre trail through the rotary trail. We will try to keep as much of the trails open as possible, but we may have to close the heron colony gates if people are not respecting the trail closures. See attached maps for details.

See City of Chilliwack website for updated information about the Vedder Rotary trail closures: https://www.chilliwack.com/main/page.cfm?id=3171

Thank you for your support and understanding!!

08/08/2026

Getting a closer look at what lives beneath the surface, benthic invertebrate sampling helps us assess stream and pond health by studying the tiny organisms that call them home. Many insects that we see flying around as adults actually begin their lives underwater as aquatic larvae, including mayflies, damselflies, caddisflies, dragonflies, mosquitoes, and mnay more! Because different species have different tolerances to pollution, these small creatures tell a big story about water quality and the overall health of our aquatic ecosystems.

Address

5200 Sumas Prairie Road
Chilliwack, BC
V2R4N7

Telephone

+16048236603

Website

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