Come on in — the water’s great and it’s all around you.
That’s the rallying cry for this Sunday’s fourth annual Gorge Swim Fest, which is about getting Greater Victorians to immerse themselves in the clean, warm waters at Banfield and Esquimalt Gorge parks from noon until 4 p.m.
“Even if you don’t want to swim, it’s great to come down and have some food, and listen to the music,” said event co-chair Jack Meredith. “We’ll have games for the kids and crafts going on. It’s a real community-oriented kind of event.”
Four local bands will play at Banfield and two performers at the Esquimalt Gorge Park, with Mexican food available from Ginger Brothers Burritos.
Meredith has taken a dip every day this summer and would like others who have never tried it to give it a whirl. “It’s just been beautiful,” he said.
For the fest, vintage swimming attire in homage to the waterway’s history as a swimming resort and site of major competitions is welcome.
“We’re hoping that that will happen again this year. People have a whole lot of fun with it.”
The fest has a serious side as well, he stressed. “The Gorge used to be dirty, used to be a problem. But some heroic efforts by government and various organizations cleaned it up.”
The year 2000 marked the turning of the tide in favour of safe, clean public swimming, with the water quality regularly tested by Island Heath, he said, but few people know that. “What we are concerned about is that if people think it’s polluted, [they’ll say] ‘Oh, another piece of trash going in there won’t be a problem,’ and it will be.
“A huge effort went into making it clean and we believe that if there’s literally hundreds of people swimming in the Gorge, they’re going to be the people who steward it and want to protect it and ensure that it is a wonderful swimming spot.”
The website of the Gorge Swim Fest Society notes that national competitions took place from the 1890s to the 1930s, with many active swimming clubs and even a visit from Hawaii’s Duke Kahanamoku, reigning world champion sprint-swimmer and father of modern surfing.
When the Crystal Pool opened on Government Street in 1926, the Gorge swimming galas fell off and its days as a swimming resort receded.
Now that pool is gone, but the Gorge is back.
Dose up on Salt Spring's garlic and music fest
Ward off the nearing of fall with a powerful dose of the garlic and music festival on Salt Spring Island this weekend. B.C. Ferries has added extra sailings for the event.
The inaugural Salt Spring Garlic and Music Festival on Saturday and Sunday offers music workshops and the sounds of bands including Chilliwack — the Canadian group’s first time playing on Salt Spring — garlic tastings, farm and food vendors and a beer garden.
B.C. Ferries has added late-night sailings for each night of the festival, departing at 9:40 p.m. from Fulford Harbour on Salt Spring Island to Swartz Bay.
“B.C. Ferries is pleased to add these extra sailings as our way to help support this community event,” said B.C. Ferries’ spokeswoman Deborah Marshall.
“These extra sailings will allow festival-goers from Victoria to stay a little longer and enjoy the entertainment on Salt Spring Island.”
Festival founder Neale Smith said the later sailings allow festival-goers an opportunity “to enjoy an incredible weekend of entertainment, food, workshops and events and not worry about missing the ferry home.”
Organizers said lots of parking is available at the site, Paradise Farm at 255 Musgrave Rd., at a cost of $10 per vehicle.
For those travelling on foot, a shuttle service will be available from the major ferry ports (Fulford and Vesuvius) to the festival and from the bottom of Isabella Point Road and the Fulford Ganges Road turnoff to the festival site.
Proceeds will go to Salt Spring’s music and farming community.
Festival tickets and information on shuttle services and more are available at saltspringgarlicfestival. com and various Salt Spring Island vendors.
Mela offers a taste of India
The tastes, sights and sounds of India will be cooking in Centennial Square for the sixth annual India Mela beginning on Friday.
The three-day festival, organized by the Victoria chapter of the India Canada Cultural Association, takes place Friday to Sunday in Victoria’s downtown Centennial Square. “It’s going to be fun,” said association president Gurdial Singh (Gordy) Dodd.
There will be more than 200 performers over the three days and about 25 booths, Dodd added. The festival, which is free to attend, offers Indian cuisine, live Bhangra beats by Juno-nominated artist DJ A-Slam, performances by Shiamak Davar Academy, a fashion show, clothing and jewelry for sale, Henna tattoos, palm reading, and arts and crafts.
Little airshow is a big draw
Victoria Largest Little Airshow is back for its annual appearance over the Saanich Peninsula.
The event, a scaled-down version of regular airshows, is presented by the Victoria Radio Control Modelers Society. It has generated over $213,000 for charity over the years, with all proceeds going to the Saanich Peninsula Hospital Foundation and CFAX Santas Anonymous.
The society’s Mike Scholefield said 30 or more model planes will be part of the show, set for Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in a field off Lochside Drive, between Island View and Martindale roads. “We’re having aerobatic airplanes, we’re going to have civilian airplanes, World War One, World War Two, helicopters, turbine jets.”
The flying lawnmower seen at past shows will also be featured, along with a return visit by Superman.
Scholefield’s entry will be a Sukhoi, a Russian aerobatic plane, with a 2.5-metre wing span. Admission is by donation.
Flock to Ogden Point for Pet-A-Palooza
Pets, pets and more pets will turn Ogden Point into a four-legged free-for-all this weekend.
It all happens at Pet-A-Palooza, which runs from 10 a.m.to 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. People are invited to bring their pets for such attractions as dog-wedding pictures or the Mutt Strutt — a 20-foot race for canine competitors.
“We took the music-festival model and incorporated that to the pet industry,” said spokesman Lonnie Powell. “We’re not an expo, we’re not a trade show.”
He said that means a heavy emphasis on entertainment at the free gathering — largely populated by dogs, although visitors bring the occasional cat or other creature.
The event is put on in co-operation with the Greater Victoria Harbour Authority, and raises money for the non-profit Just Love Animals Society through sponsorships and exhibitor spaces. Powell says the society is an awareness and education organization that emphasizes holistic pet care, runs campaigns dealing with issues like spaying and neutering, and is working to create a pet-memorial site in Vancouver.
Pet-A-Palooza is marking its fourth year in Victoria. It has also been held in Vancouver and Calgary. Last year’s Victoria show drew 22,000 people.
Collector cars on display in Oak Bay
An estimated 250 vintage vehicles will converge Sunday for the Oak Bay Collector Car Festival, which will celebrate 15 years of high-octane fun.
Highlights will range from performer Virtual Elvis to a 1957 Cadillac El Dorado Biarritz that took seven years to restore, said show co-ordinator Ken Agate.
Agate called the convertible “the top of the line, the best you can get. Elvis had one and they only made a few.”
The vehicles will be on display between Monterey and Mitchell streets, and start driving into position as early as 7 a.m.
The show will wrap up at 3:30 p.m.
The Biarritz, owned by Don Hutton, will receive prime position, Agate said, but 12 local artists will also display works in progress.
Speaking of Elvis, Agate said, “people are stunned” when they hear Virtual Elvis, a.k.a. Scott MacDonald.
Also on hand will be Joey Scarfone, who has just launched a full-colour book on the vintage cars of Victoria and will sign copies.
Michael May, former curator of Victoria’s car museum during the 1980s, will judge the best restoration and best survivor among the cars on display, followed by a Rotary Club draw for a new car.
Prime rib and burgers will be barbecued in front of Oak Bay municipal hall starting at 10.30 a.m.
Registration fee to participate in the show is $15, which can be paid on arrival Sunday from the Victoria side of Oak Bay Avenue from 7.30 to 11 a.m.
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