Canada Trip Day 7: Capilano River Facility - Salmon!

19 June 2010 - The Capilano River Facility is a salmon hatchery located below the Cleveland Dam along the Capilano River. Due to the decline of salmon spawning from the construction of the Cleveland Dam in 1954, the Department of Fisheries and Oceans built a hatchery which completed in 1971 to rear and release the salmons below the dam. Each year about a million young salmons (of types Coho, Chinook and Steelhead) are released into the Capilano River with about 15 thousands of adult salmons returning back to the facility.

The facility is also a centre of education and research where students come for field visits and research projects on salmon production, migration and ocean survival are ongoing.

Capilano River beside the salmon hatchery


Above the fish ladder is the view of the Capilano River


Looking down, you may see a salmon or two swimming up the fish ladder to return to the hatchery


Salmon fishes congregated at one level of the fish ladder. I've never seen so many salmon fishes in my whole life!


Salmon fishes at the fish ladder ready to jump to the next level


Salmons resting at different levels of the fish ladder before jumping to the next level to return to the hatchery. Some of these levels are completely packed with salmon fishes.


Salmon fishes will return from this side of the river after the river weir


The river weir provides a fishway for the returning adult salmons to swim into the fish ladder


Front view of the river weir with a water level metering post


We walked further down river to a bridge. Found this tree with dangling moss pretty.


A man fishing further down river


Calm, dark green waters of Capilano River. According to my uncle, it is very dangerous to stand on the cliffs to fish as they are very slippery and there have been cases of death. Some of the dangerous areas have been fenced off.


The water is so clear and pretty! I want to swim!


If you can spot in the picture, there's a man sitting by the edge of the cliff to fish