Canadian Geographic has listed "Canada's Gnarliest Tree", the burly redcedar in Avatar Grove, and the San Juan Spruce near Port Renfrew, which the Ancient Forest Alliance have popularized, as two of the most iconic trees in Canada! Take note that the San Juan Spruce is no longer the 2nd largest spruce in Canada in timber volume, as a large part of its main trunk broke off in a severe storm not long ago. Nonetheless it is still a spectacular tree worth visiting!
Here's a new article in The Tyee about the Ancient Forest Alliance's use of drone videos to highlight the beauty and destruction of old-growth forests in BC, specifically the new drone video about climbing Big Lonely Doug (Canada's 2nd largest-known Douglas-fir, surrounded by an old-growth clearcut by Teal-Jones in 2012).
So many THANKS to the Mountain Equipment Co-op's staff (many of them from Victoria and Vancouver pictured here on our 2013 hike to the Lower Avatar Grove near Port Renfrew) for choosing the Ancient Forest Alliance again for their year-end staff donation! We're most grateful to this wonderful group of outdoor and nature enthusiasts for supporting us over so many years!!
Here's a new article written by the AFA's Ken Wu for the Footprint Press, a naturalist/ environmental magazine serving the eastern Fraser Valley, about the endangered Echo Lake Ancient Forest east of Mission. While the south and west sides are protected by an Old-Growth Management Area, the north side and also the central "ancient redcedar valley" with the largest old-growth trees are all open for logging. So far the road-building has not begun, but many of the ancient trees have been spray-painted and surveyed for future cutblocks. Photos by the AFA's TJ Watt.
Damage to the famed Avatar Grove Boardwalk in the Lower Grove due to the hurricane-force winds during the October 15 storm has delayed the completion launch of the Avatar Grove Boardwalk until next spring. The Ancient Forest Alliance had literally just completed the boardwalk a week before the storm, after 3 years of hard work involving a hundred volunteers, and was about to hold a ribbon-cutting ceremony last week to announce its completion – but now the launch will be delayed until the boardwalk can be repaired and the trail cleared, which will take several months due to the wet winter weather. The winter storm resulted in at least 30 trees crashing down over the Avatar Grove Trail in the Lower Grove, damaging sections of the boardwalk. Luckily none of the grove’s famed giant redcedars or Douglas-firs fell during the storm.
"Hurricane-force winds ripped through the area on Oct. 15 resulting in 30 trees crashing down over the Avatar Grove Trail in the lower grove area, damaging sections of the boardwalk. None of the grove’s famed ancient Western redcedars or Douglas fir fell during the storm. The Ancient Forest Alliance completed the boardwalk a week before the storm, in a project that took three years and involved hundreds of volunteers."
Here is Radio Canada's article in French on the Ancient Forest Alliance's planned old-growth tours in Mandarin and Cantonese for the half a million Chinese-speakers in the Lower Mainland.
Here's the CBC News video coverage of the Chinese-Language Ancient Forest Tours program that we're developing, which aims to engage the half a million Chinese speakers in the Vancouver region to diversify and broaden the movement to protect old-growth forests!
Here's the CTV News video coverage of the Chinese-Language Ancient Forest Tours program that we're developing, which aims to engage the half a million Chinese speakers in the Vancouver region to diversify and broaden the movement to protect old-growth forests!
Here is today's Vancouver Sun article about the Chinese-Language Ancient Forest Tours program that we're developing. Volunteer educators who we are training about old-growth ecology and conservation issues will be doing the tours starting in Stanley Park at dates to be announced. Note that the tours are also open to those who are interested in learning Mandarin or Cantonese.
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