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Explore: Family-friendly Halloween events; paranormal at Point Ellice

Dress your children up for a day of thrills and fun — and even a ride on a train — at two family-friendly Halloween events this weekend, one in Saanich and the other in Duncan.
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Pumpkins are in the patch and that means Halloween is near. Several family events take place this weekend as a prelude to the real deal on Oct. 31.

Dress your children up for a day of thrills and fun — and even a ride on a train — at two family-friendly Halloween events this weekend, one in Saanich and the other in Duncan.

• Take the whole family for an afternoon of Halloween fun with CRD Regional Parks naturalists at Forest Spook-tacular, a drop-in event at Francis/King Regional Park on Saturday.

Drop by to view displays, do Halloween crafts and check out a cauldron of hot ghoulish brew filled with spooky treasures from the natural world.

There will be guided walks at 11:15 a.m. and 1:15 p.m., with prizes for people in costumes.

The family-friendly program is free to attend. It runs from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., Saturday, at the Nature Centre (off Munn Road) of Francis/King Regional Park.

Try to arrive 10 minutes before the start of the program. Please leave pets at home. For more information, go to crd.bc.ca/parks.

• Climb aboard the Halloween Train at the B.C. Forest Discovery Centre Friday to Sunday for a day of thrills, chills and family fun in Duncan.

Dress up in your best costume and hop on the train, which runs every half hour until 8:30 p.m., to view all the new displays. The train and most displays are covered, so you can have fun, come rain or shine.

Activities include crafts in the schoolhouse, trick or treat stations for the little ones and live entertainment.

Enjoy hot chocolate, coffee or a meal seated around the popular fire pits.

Although this is a family friendly event, it can be a little scary for very young children. Organizers suggest that you take them home before the sun sets.

Admission is $12 adults, $10 youth (13 to 18) and seniors and $8 for children (three to 12) and free for those under two. The Halloween Train runs 3:30 to 9 p.m. Oct. 19 to 21 and repeats Oct. 25 to 30 at the B.C. Forest Discovery Centre, 2892 Drinkwater Rd. (off the Trans-Canada Highway), Duncan. For more information, go to bcforestdiscoverycentre.com.

Poke into the paranormal at Point Ellice

Join the Beyond Belief Paranormal Team, if you dare, as they undertake a paranormal investigation using ghost-hunting equipment at Point Ellice House on Saturday.

Staff and visitors have long reported paranormal occurrences in and around the 1861 home. Some people feel ghostly presences in the rooms of the house and visitor centre along with full-body apparitions, voices, footsteps and lights turning on by themselves.

Over the course of the evening, you will have the opportunity to participate in seances, vigils, electronic voice phenomena sessions, glass moving and table tipping.

This event is not suitable for children under 16 years old. Those between 16 and 18 need to be accompanied by a parent/guardian.

Weather permitting, the investigation will also include the grounds, so people are encouraged to dress for the weather and wear flat close-toed shoes.

Participants will be required to sign a standard health-and-safety waiver for the event.

It costs $60, plus taxes and fees, to join. Alcohol and intoxication prohibited, so please ensure that you don’t have an extra glass of wine at dinner. The event runs 7:30 to 11 p.m. on Saturday at Point Ellice House, 2616 Pleasant St. For more information, go to pointellicehouse.com.

A taste of balderdash and baloney on Bologna Day

Hear stories to celebrate balderdash, blarney and the birth of a luncheon meat at Baloney on Bologna Day, Oct. 24, in the municipal chambers of Victoria City Hall.

The storytelling event is being hosted by the Victoria Storytellers’ Guild in honour of National Bologna Day, which is on Oct. 24. This little-known unofficial day to celebrate the ubiquitous luncheon sandwich meat is celebrated in the U.S. and Canada.

The light-hearted event includes storytellers from the guild and other mystery guest speakers. Expect to hear tall tales, personal stories involving bologna — and outright lies.

Organizers hope this event will be the first of what becomes an annual event.

Admission is by donation, with collected funds benefiting the Mustard Seed.

The event runs from 2 to 4 p.m., Oct. 24, in the municipal chambers of Victoria City Hall, 1 Centennial Sq. For more information, go to victoriastorytellers.org.

 Under the dome of 19th-century curious 

Explore the Victorian mania for collecting natural curiosities — from duelling frogs to monkey heads — at Victorians Under Glass, a lecture hosted by Ross Bay Villa today.

The illustrated lecture, by local fine-art conservator Simone Vogel-Horridge, will delve into the 19th-century mania for collecting natural curiosities, memorial art and sentimental taxidermy.

No 19th-century drawing room was complete without a display of curios under a glass dome, which could include phantom bouquets, the aforementioned frogs and monkeys, as well as butterflies and sea shells.

If the lecture leaves you longing to have one of these period pieces of your own, Vogel-Horridge will lead a hands-on workshop to create your own dome glass display on Dec. 2.

Admission is $10. The lecture starts at 7:30 tonight at Ross Bay Villa, 1490 Fairfield Rd. Reserve your tickets at info@rossbayvilla.org or 250-598-1803. For more information, go to rossbayvilla.org.

 Gathering of youth exploring foods 

Connect with other local youth passionate about food, learn about fair-trade chocolate, culturally diverse food systems and more at the second annual Youth Food Gathering, Saturday and Sunday at the Quadra Village Community Centre.

The fun and educational weekend event, where participants learn, share, eat and grow, is targeted at youth ages 14 to 24.

It is hosted by the Youth Food Network.

There will be two days of workshops on permaculture, fermentation, how to start a school garden, cooking 101, resources, diverse food systems and more.

The weekend kicks off on Saturday afternoon with art and live music, snacks and dinner provided. Breakfast and snacks will be included on Sunday.

Tickets are sliding scale — from $10 to $30 by donation. However, organizers stress that their goal is to include everyone, regardless of funds. Send them a message and they will supply you with a code for a free ticket. The event runs noon to 8 p.m. on Saturday and 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sunday, 901 Kings Rd. For more information, go to youthfoodnetwork.ca/youth-food-gathering-2018.

 Help and practice with identifying mushrooms 

Learn all about wild mushrooms from two experts at two introductory courses meant for adults, today and Sunday at various venues.

Today’s course — Introduction to Mushrooms — delves into the essential elements of mushroom biology, their uses and how to identify them.

Your instructor will be Andy MacKinnon, a forest ecologist and co-author of six plant guidebooks.

Students are encouraged to bring mushrooms to class for identification and discussion.

The course runs from 7 to 9 p.m. tonight at Swan Lake Nature House, 3873 Swan Lake Rd.

Take a field trip to hone your skills and techniques to identify fungi at Wild Mushrooms in the Field.

Participants will be led by Kem Luther, a field naturalist and author, on a field trip in Colwood.

The field trip runs from 2 to 4 p.m. on Sunday at a specific location to be announced.

Admission for either event is $60 general public, $54 for members of Swan Lake or South Vancouver Island Mycological Society. For more information, go to swanlake.bc.ca.