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View Full Version : Fish ladders at Hatley Castle Estate



casil403
01-22-2010, 07:37 PM
Another image from my trip back home in December.
A history on these ladders really ahead of their time as far as conservation goes:
These fish ladders were part of the original 1912-1914 garden design and were probably created because of estate ownerJames Dunsmuir's interest in hunting and fishing.

Dunsmuir built the Hatley Park estate as a retirement home after his term as British Columbia provincial lieutenant governor. There are several of these ponds and connecting fish ladders throughout the property linking all the ponds together as well as the lagoon.

Sea run cutthroat trout leave the lagoon and enter the large ponds by "climbing" the ladders. Adults then head for the gravelly creeks where they spawn and juveniles live in the ponds and creeks for up to two years before migrating back to the salt water lagoon.


http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2729/4292325195_776c4d2366_o.jpg

Mad Aussie
01-22-2010, 10:31 PM
Cool ... never seen something like this before.

casil403
01-22-2010, 10:36 PM
Thanks MA...these were run down for a long time but through donations they rebuilt them to their former glory...they have been doing trout watches to see if they come back and they have! :clap:

Bambi
01-22-2010, 10:37 PM
I like the perpsective on this one casil