Afternoon: ARRIVALS: Independent arrivals to the Vancouver hotel. Check-in is after 4:00 p.m.

Dinner: Dinner at the hotel. This evening's dinner will commence at approximately 6:00 pm.

Evening: INTRODUCTIONS & ORIENTATION: Following dinner, you will meet for introductions, a review of the program and site orientation.

Lodging: Best Western Sands by the Sea

Meals Included: Dinner

Museum of Anthropology/Urban Scavenger Hunt - Gastown, Chinatown and Granville Island

Breakfast: Breakfast at the hotel. Optional morning walk along the seawall.

Morning: FIELD TRIP: Explore the Museum of Anthropology and gain a remarkable glimpse into the lives of the indigenous peoples of the northwest coast of British Columbia. Discover one of the world's outstanding collections of Pacific Northwest Aboriginal artifacts. Massive totem poles, carved boxes, bowls and feast dishes are displayed in the Great Hall, while smaller (but equally magnificent) pieces in gold, silver, argillite, wood, ceramic and other materials are exhibited in the galleries. Canada's largest teaching museum is located in a spectacular building overlooking mountains and sea, and its collections, exhibitions and programs are renowned for providing insight into the cultures of indigenous peoples around the world.

Lunch: Lunch at the Museum of Anthropology.

Afternoon: FIELD TRIP: Scavenger Hunt - Vancouver's Neighborhoods. Explore some of the most colourful parts of Vancouver’s history on this fun and interactive walking exploration where participants will discover the west coast art, culture, food, First Nations, history and much, much more. The adventure will begin in English Bay and take participants on a well-designed course through Gastown, Chinatown, and down to Granville Island. Participants will receive a list of questions and tasks each worth a different point value. The game will navigate participants along Blood Alley, through some of the back ways of Chinatown and into a variety of shops including the local herbal pharmacist, fish monger and traditional baker to find out what is stored in the gray buckets outside the fish market or the cost of a lotus bun. We’ll stop for a sampling of traditional dim sum followed by hot apple pastry to refuel before moving on to Granville Island to visit the Kids Market and Totem Carving Gallery.

Dinner: Dinner at a local restaurant.

Evening: FREE TIME: Enjoy some free time to relax or explore more of Vancouver. Walk along the seawall to Stanley Park, take the grandkids swimming, ascend Grouse Mountain on the gondola or see Vancouver from atop the lookout.

Lodging: Best Western Sands by the Sea

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Cycling in Stanley Park/Ferry to Vancouver Island/Pacific Rim National Park

Breakfast: Breakfast at the hotel. Optional morning walk at English Bay.

Morning: FIELD TRIP: Cycling in Stanley Park. Traverse the park and seawall by bike during an exploration of Stanley Park, a breathtaking park which remains unspoiled and a testimony to the giant trees which occupied the site of Vancouver in its former days. Learn about old growth forests, and the natural west coast atmosphere amidst a back drop of majestic cedar, hemlock and fir trees which transports visitors to an environment rich in tranquility. World famous landmarks in the park will also be discussed including Lost Lagoon, totem poles, various monuments and sculptures, and the 5.5 mi seawall which encircles the entire park.

Lunch: Box lunch on the ferry.

Afternoon: FERRY TO VANCOUVER ISLAND: Leaving the city behind, we’ll explore a whole other world on Vancouver Island. The largest Island on the West Coast of North America, Vancouver Island is separated from the mainland of Canada by the Georgia Strait, Johnstone Strait, and the Queen Charlotte Strait. It is separated from the United States mainland by the Juan de Fuca Strait in the south. Travel by ferry to the port of Nanaimo then across the island to Ucluelet and Pacific Rim National Park. En route watch for whales, seals, seabirds and enjoy the beautiful scenery PACIFIC RIM NATIONAL PARK: We arrive on the west coast of Vancouver Island, a magnificent area of old-growth forests, stunning fjords (or "sounds" in local parlance), rocky coasts, and sandy beaches. Although Pacific Rim National Park was established in 1971, it wasn't until 1993 that the area really exploded into the greater consciousness. That was when thousands of environmentalists from around the world gathered to protest the clear-cutting of old-growth forests in Clayoquot Sound. When footage of the protests ran on the evening news, people who saw the landscape for the first time were moved to come experience it firsthand. Through stimulating, hands-on field trips, participants will learn about the unique biodiversity of this area.

Dinner: Dinner at a local restaurant.

Evening: FREE TIME: Take some time to relax at the hotel stroll the waterfront, do some beachcombing or visit the village of Ucluelet.

Lodging: The Canadian Princess

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast: Breakfast at the hotel. Optional morning walk on the waterfront.

Morning: FIELD TRIP: Pacific Rim National Park. We begin our exploration of Pacific Rim National Park and Clayoquot Sound with experts from the Raincoast Education Centre and Tofino Botanical Gardens. They specialize in educational programming for youth and adults that explores the unique biodiversity of the Clayoquot Sound region (eg. temperate rainforest, ancient old-growth forests and intertidal ecosystems) as well as the concept of conservation and how we can be stewards to the environment. The program itinerary has been carefully designed to appeal to both adults and youth. Learn about this incredible and rugged natural environment including the rainforest and the intertidal zone, Tofino Mudflats Wildlife Management. Coastal temperate rainforests are one of the world’s rarest ecosystems. The Clayoquot Sound UNESCO Biosphere Reserve contains some of the world’s best examples of intact coastal temperate rainforests, and the Tofino Botanical Gardens is fortunate to have sections of Clayoquot Sound’s old growth rainforest on their waterfront property.

Lunch: Lunch at a local restaurant.

Afternoon: FIELD TRIP: Rainforest Walk. We’ll join an expert on an interpretive rainforest walk answering questions that highlight the mystery and intrigue that scientists have discovered about these ancient ecosystems. How many species remain to be discovered in the world? Looking straight up into the canopy from the Old Growth Boardwalk, our expert ecologist explains how the Tofino Botanical Gardens is working with a rainforest canopy research team that is discovering new arthropod species in Clayoquot Sound. How do you find a marbled murrelet nest? What is convergent evolution? A trip through the Gardens’ Chilean temperate rainforest exhibit gives a rare hands-on perspective of this fascinating evolutionary phenomenon.

Dinner: Dinner at a local restaurant.

Evening: GAME NIGHT: Tonight we will have some fun with games and outdoor activities with the group leader.

Lodging: The Canadian Princess

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast: Breakfast at the hotel. Optional morning walk.

Morning: FIELD TRIP: The Intertidal Zone - Sponges, Seastars and Snails. Between high tide and low tide there is a magical world filled with an incredible diversity of life that one can see only for a few hours every day. From anemones and arthropods to sponges and seastars, the intertidal zone is literally buzzing with life. This exciting, hand-on intertidal adventure follows the Chesterman Beach tombolo (a large sandbar) out to Frank Island, where we’ll will learn about the stresses of being an intertidal organism, and the tactics that intertidal life has developed to withstand those stresses. How do snails and crabs survive hot sun and drenching rain? Are sea stars just the colourful docile creatures they seem, or are they a voracious predator terrorizing mussels and barnacles? Which seaweed contains a natural shock absorber? Which intertidal creature lives its entire life on its head? Who grows teeth on its tongue to eat? All these questions and more will be answered! A special art workshop will follow highlighting the incredible sea life we’ve discovered on our field trips.

Lunch: Lunch at a local restaurant.

Afternoon: FIELD TRIP: Beach Safari and the World of Otters. This field trip will take participants out along the sandy beaches with an excellent rocky intertidal outcrop to learn the importance of biodiversity. Join a well-known local marine biologist for a beach hike and learn about the return of the sea otter to BC waters and its story The last sea otter in BC was killed in 1929 following two centuries of commercial hunting, yet today there are about 3,500 sea otters in British Columbia. Why were sea otters so valuable? How did sea otter hunting become a key turning point in the history of coastal BC? Now that this "keystone species" is making a comeback, what kind of impact is its recovery having? Join us to find out!

Dinner: FAREWELL DINNER & EVENING: Farewell dinner and special wrap-up activities.

Lodging: The Canadian Princess

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast: Breakfast at the hotel. Optional early morning walk.

Morning: TRANSFER BY FERRY & COACH: This morning we leave the island's west coast and head for Nanaimo to catch the ferry. We stop along the way at the store with the Goats on the Roof - Coombs Country Market. Ferry arrives at terminal in Tsawwassen (outside Vancouver) approximately 2:45 p.m. Buses are available to take passengers from the ferry terminal to Vancouver airport or downtown.

Meals Included: Breakfast