Rivers Day celebrations are coming to Allco Park in Maple Ridge

The Alouette River Management Society will host its 33rd annual Rivers Day at Allco Park in Maple Ridge on Sunday, Sept. 27. The free event runs from 10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. and will celebrate rivers, wetlands, wildlife and the local watershed.

Family activities will include a 50-foot inflatable salmon tent, face painting, balloon animals and limited-edition salmon cookies for the first 100 arrivals. Lunch will be provided by the Maple Ridge Lions Club, and more than 25 environmental exhibitors will attend.

ARMS spokesperson Sophie Sparrow said Ocean Wise will bring an educational station with artifacts and materials focused on Pacific salmon, while Enchanted Place, Forest Bather will attend for the first time. Visitors can meet a northern spotted owl, taste honey from North Fraser Beekeepers hives, touch an eight-foot snake brought by West Coast Exotics, attend guided tours of the Allco salmon hatchery and watch performances by the Backroad Cruisers and Lisa Rae.

A free shuttle will run every 15 minutes from the Garibaldi Secondary School parking lot to Allco Park at 13255 Alouette Rd. Children aged three and younger will not be permitted on the shuttle. This year’s BC Rivers Day theme is “Everyone can be a river steward.”