The Friends of Uplands Park invite all to Cattle Point on Mother’s Day to explore Victoria’s ancient and recent natural history alongside four geologists from the BC Geological Survey of the BC Ministry of Energy and Mines.
Margaret Lidkea, chair of FOUP will guide visitors through stations with Petroleum Geology Director Fil Ferri, Environmental Geoscience and Permitting Manager Kim Bellefontaine, Coal Geologist Janet Riddell and Senior Project Geologist/Northern BC Manager JoAnne Nelson.
Based on last year’s Cattle Point Rocks event, Lidkea expects a success.
“We’ll have a low tide of point six to point seven metres around 2 p.m.” she said. “That means we’ll be able to see a lot of the Cattle Point region. We’ll be rock-hopping.” She added that the camas should be in full bloom – late this year but in time for the event.
“We’ll learn what earthquakes do, where earthquakes splits are, how glacial erosion happened at the end of the last Ice Age, and how we can see those marks in our own rocks, clay and sand.” Cattle Point is an especially useful zone for examining such features because it has traces of ice and meltwater streams as well as bedrock.
“Geology is critical to the condition of our ecosystems, like the Garry Oak,” Lidkea said. The team of geologists will explain how the two relate, the ripple effects of human intervention on the land and sea shore, and more about our coast and local geology.
Dress for the weather and bring cameras to document the experience.
Lidkea added that Friends of Uplands Park welcomes any donations. “We’re a nonprofit run by volunteers. Donations make events and park restoration possible.”
Visit Cattle Point on May 14, 2 to 4 p.m.