The Thornton Creek Hatchery and the Thornton Creek Enhancement Society hosted its annual Rubber Fish Race and hatchery tour on Sunday afternoon as part of the Pacific Rim Whale Festival.
Visitors to the hatchery were invited to sponsor a rubber fish for $5.
“It’s a fun event to get families and kids out and a free hot dog and juice and a little chance to show a little bit about the work we do at the hatchery,” said Hatchery manager Dave Hurwitz.
The owners of the top 10 fish to cross the finish line received prizes courtesy of Ucluelet Petro Can.
Society board member Carol Sedgwick said a word of thanks to all the volunteers and sponsors that made the event happen.
“First of all, this event is sponsored by the Ucluelet Petro Can. They give us 10, $20 gift certificates to give out to all our winners so a big round for Petro Can,” said Sedgwick.
Hurwitz said the hatchery does enhancement work in both Clayoquot and Barkley Sound.
“We work on a lot of Chinook, Chum, and a couple Coho systems in both of the Sounds. We’re focusing more and more on re-building runs. Not just creating fisheries as it were but trying to restore salmon runs where they’ve been extirpated,” he said.
Thornton Creek is a non-profit, volunteer driven society.
“We have volunteers of all ages that help us out and it makes a huge difference and it’s great because we are a community organization,” Hurwitz said.
The hatchery is located in the North side of the Ucluelet harbour. Anyone interested in learning more is encouraged to visit their Facebook Page: @ThorntonCreekHatchery.
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