Salmon Leave Home at Hoy Creek on Mother's Day

A young boy releases a coho smolt on the edge of Hoy Creek, while a volunteer assists and looks on - at Salmon Leave Home 2018. (Photo: HSWS)

The Hoy-Scott Watershed Society invites the community out for their annual Salmon Leave Home event on Mother’s Day, Sunday May 12 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Hoy Creek Hatchery in Coquitlam.  People of all ages will have the opportunity to help release 18-month-old coho smolts into Hoy Creek.

“Salmon Leave Home is a great way for families to connect with nature, and brings awareness to our delicate ecosystem, right here in Coquitlam,” said society president, Robbin Whachell.  “Once the salmon are released, they make their way downstream to Scott Creek, then Coquitlam River, the Fraser River - which empties into the Strait of Georgia on the Pacific Ocean. They take about a year to get to the ocean, and then return in approximately 2 years to the same location where they were spawned.”  

The family-friendly free outdoor event will run rain or shine and the society will have families engaged in fishy fun. Students from the Pinetree Secondary community club will be providing face painting, and a family walk through the watershed is always beautiful at this time of year.

The event is a great opportunity to learn about the local fish hatchery and get information on the year-round volunteer-run salmon enhancement program, which includes work with plants in the riparian area of Hoy and Scott Creeks. 20,000 coho fry will also be on display.

The hatchery is located in the Hoy Creek Linear Park behind Douglas College and north of Guildford, a few minutes walk inland, and is only a ten-minute walk from the Lafarge Lake-Douglas skytrain station.  To find the exact location, simply Google “Hoy Creek Hatchery.”

RSVP to the Facebook event page to receive updates and a reminder.

Hoy-Scott Watershed Society, (HSWS) is a not-for-profit, volunteer run environmental stewardship group, that conducts a year-round salmon enhancement program in partnership with the City of Coquitlam, and the Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada. We are actively involved in watershed restoration, public awareness, education and preservation.

Coquitlam residents help release coho at Salmon Leave Home

A boy releases coho salmon under the guidance of a volunteer at Hoy Creek. 

The weather was perfect for our annual Salmon Leave Home event on May 6! Well over a thousand residents participated.

We'd like to thank everyone who came out to lend a hand and give their well wishes and good thoughts to our 5000 coho smolts who now make Hoy Creek their home.  The fish will now make the creeks, or the Coquitlam or Fraser rivers their home for about a year before making it to the ocean. 

Patrons of Salmon Leave Home listen to Ed Hall of Kwikwetlem First Nation at the opening of the annual event at Hoy Creek. 

A big thank you to special guests, the Kwikwetlem First Nation who provided comment during the opening ceremony and released our first fish into Hoy Creek. Thanks also to the Wild Salmon Caravan for providing entertainment and art activities. The kids loved painting the salmon van!  The Pinetree Secondary School students were a great help on site, and also provided face painting. 

The Wild Salmon Caravan served up fishy fun. 

CBC News came out to provide coverage of the event on the evening news that day. 

After the event closed, the rearing pond was cleaned out in preparation for the next broodstock which will make the location their home in June. The approximately 6-month old salmon will live there until the next Salmon Leave Home event in May 2019. 

To view our all of our photos of the event, check out our Facebook album. If you are not a Facebook user, we have a Google photo album too.

We'll see you at Salmon Come Home in October!

HSWS featured in Tri-City News 'Saving our Salmon' (SOS) series

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Thank you for your support, Tri-City News!

The Hoy-Scott Watershed Society was quoted in the The Tri-City News on November 16th, 2016, along with other stewardship groups, on how we can all do our part in protecting wild salmon.

"Get to know your watershed. Salmon and their habitat can’t protect themselves - we need to care and advocate for both. Visit a stream, talk to your local stewardship group, and view the fish and habitat. Understand the issues. Monitor and report suspicious activity." - HSWS

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Part 1

We were also featured on November 19th through a site visit by reporter Sarah Payne. Both HSWS president, Robbin Whachell, and vice president and hatchery manager, Rodney Lee were interviewed for the article.

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Salmon Leave Home set for Sunday, May 1st

Join the Hoy-Scott Watershed Society on Sunday, May 1stfrom 11am to 2pm at Hoy Creek Hatchery in Coquiatlam as thousands of coho smolts will be released into Hoy Creek to make their way down to the Pacific Ocean.
(HSWS Photo)

The Hoy-Scott Watershed Society invites the community out for their annual Salmon Leave Home event on Sunday May 1st from 11am to 2pm at the Hoy Creek Hatchery in Coquitlam.  Children of all ages will have the opportunity to help release 18-month-old coho smolts into Hoy Creek.

“Salmon Leave Home is a great event for families to discover firsthand the wonders of nature in their environment,” said hatchery manager, Rodney Lee.  “Once the salmon are released they make their way downstream to Scott Creek, then Coquitlam River, then the Fraser River which empties into the Strait of Georgia on the Pacific Ocean.  They return in about 2 years time to the location where they were spawned,” said Lee.

The family-friendly free outdoor event will run rain or shine and the society will have families engaged in building Mason bee boxes, and bird houses.  Music is being provided by CKPM FM Tri-City Radio, and guest artist, Etienne Sew.

Society volunteers will be providing tours and information on the salmon enhancement program which is a year-round operation and includes work with plants in the riparian area of Hoy and Scott Creeks.

20,000 coho fry will also be on display and this year’s event includes activities and/or participation by  Pinetree Secondary School, Sustainable Youth Canada, Coquitlam Farmer's Market Society, Rocky Point Ice Cream, and Kwikwetlem First Nation.

The hatchery is located in the Hoy Creek Linear Park behind Douglas College and north of Guildford, a few minutes walk inland.  To find the exact location, simply Google “Hoy Creek Hatchery.”  

More information can be found at the society’s website, hoyscottcreeks.org or at hashtag #SalmonLeaveHome.

Hoy-Scott Watershed Society, (HSWS) is a not-for-profit, volunteer run environmental stewardship group, that conducts a year-round salmon enhancement program in partnership with the City of Coquitlam, and the Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada. We are actively involved in watershed restoration, public awareness, education and preservation.

Coho smolts, approximately 18 months old, seen on display at a Hoy-Scott Watershed Societyopen house which are held the first Saturday of each month. The public is invited to help release thousands of the smolts into Hoy Creek on Sunday, May 1st at Hoy Creek Hatchery in Coquitlam.  (HSWS Photo)