New facilities greet Sockeye viewers

NEWS/ ENVIRONMENT — There’s a lot of buzz at Roderick Haig-Brown Park and no, it’s not bees. Excavators and saws working on a multi-year construction project have left many new facilities, and the first of thousands of families have descended on the park to view the spawning salmon.

MLAs Todd Stone and Greg Kyllo joined Jerry the Moose and the Adams River Salmon Society at Roderick Haig-Brown Park on Sunday to kick off the Salute to the Sockeye Festival; a world-renowned event celebrating the dominant sockeye run in the Fraser River.

The $1.2-million construction project allows for greater flexibility in the park and provides new facilities for large and small groups.

A new, smaller day-use area meets the needs of families and individuals who come year-round to hike, mountain bike, snowshoe, ski and view wildlife.

A new gathering space can adequately accommodate large festivals and community events.

Additional improvements include:

• A new viewing platform

• A buffer zone between the Adams River and park facilities to better protect habitat

• New trails and improvements to others with new signs and displays

• Closure of older trails along the river, and rehabilitation and naturalization

• New picnic tables

• New interpretive information kiosks and signs

• Hardening surfaces, lowering grades, removing barriers and providing resting spots for greater accessibility

• A modified parking lot, enabling more parking in times of high traffic.

The Adams River Salmon Society, the Secwepemc First Nation, Department of Fisheries and Oceans and the local community have been actively involved with B.C. Parks on the project.

Roderick Haig-Brown Park was established in 1977 to conserve and protect spawning beds of various Pacific salmon, particularly sockeye.