A fleet of 80 festively decorated commercial trucks will once again cruise the streets of the capital region for the annual Island Equipment Owners Association’s Truck Light Convoy on Saturday.
The parade starts at Ogden Point and weaves its way through Oak Bay and downtown Victoria before continuing on to View Royal and Langford and ending up at Western Speedway.
Each big rig will be festooned with thousands of lights, and the first and last will be equipped with GPS trackers, so the procession’s progress can be monitored online in real time at ieoa.ca.
“Every year, our members pour their hearts into transforming their working trucks for the event,” said Wendy Watt, manager of the association. “The end result summarizes how much effort they take to give the community a good show — and collect food for the needy at the same time.”
While the sight of the brightly decorated trucks is the draw, the event is also an opportunity to collect about 2,500 kilograms of non-perishable food for three area food banks — the Mustard Seed, the Goldstream Food Bank and the Saanich Peninsula Lions Food Bank.
As the trucks can’t stop, people are encouraged to drop off donations at sites along the route designated for collecting food items. This year, people can also donate online.
The convoy, with Santa in the second vehicle, starts to roll from Ogden Point at 5:45 p.m. Saturday. The trucks are led by a police escort and average 15 km/h in the city. The trucks are expected to arrive at Western Speedway at 8:30 p.m., and will line the racetrack.
Admission to the speedway is by donation of a non-perishable food item or cash. Hot chocolate and hot dogs will be available by donation. For more information or food-collection locations, go to ieoa.ca.
Light-up events around the capital region
Victoria lights up for the season with gaily-strung lights adorning homes, tourist attractions, museums and even boats.
• While many flowers sleep, the gardeners haven’t been idle at Butchart Gardens as they deck the boughs of holly and other greenery with lights for a Magic of Christmas display. Fanciful displays depict the Twelve Days of Christmas among the pathways of the world-famous garden.
Traditional carollers and festive brass players provide an audio accompaniment for visitors wandering the grounds.
“We say we have five seasons at the gardens, as Christmas has become a season all its own,” says Dale Ryan, director of public relations for Butchart Gardens.
Each year, the tourist attraction also creates a 465-square-metre outdoor skating rink under strings of twinkling lights. Bring your own skates or rent them from the facility for $3. Helmets and wrist guards supplied at no charge. Skating costs $5 for adults, $3 for kids.
The annual light-up takes place at 5 p.m. on Saturday in front of the Rose Carousel. Christmas admission rates apply. The facility is open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily between Dec. 1 and Jan. 6 except for Christmas Day, when it is open from 1 to 9 p.m. at 800 Benvenuto Ave. For more information and details on admission fees, go to butchartgardens.com.
• Join the Greater Victoria Harbour Authority for a free cup of hot chocolate at the annual Marina Light-up, Friday in the Inner Harbour. The authority has provided free Christmas lights to boaters and float-home owners to ensure lights will be glowing on vessels throughout the holiday season in the Inner Harbour, Fisherman’s Wharf and the Wharf Street marina. Lights will be up until Dec. 31. The light-up event is free to watch.
It runs from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. Friday on the Causeway Marina docks (in front of the Empress Hotel) in the Inner Harbour. For more information, go to gvha.ca/events.
• Other light-up events are planned this weekend, including in Saanich, Esquimalt and Cook Street Village.
Sing along with student choirs performing carols at city hall
Get into the spirit of Christmas with the sound of young voices at the 53rd annual Carolling Week, a longstanding lunchtime seasonal tradition, Dec. 4 to 7 at Victoria City Hall.
Celebrate the holiday season by listening to popular carols sung by Victoria-area school choirs. Ron Berod returns on keyboard, with Al Ferraby of CFAX 1070 emceeing the event.
Tillicum Elementary and South Park Family School perform Dec. 4, followed by École Marigold Elementary and McKenzie Elementary on Wednesday and École Margaret Jenkins Elementary and Glenlyon Norfolk School on Friday.
You can sit back and enjoy or join in.
Each day, the performance will close with an opportunity for guests to participate in festive carolling.
The free performances run noon to 12:45 p.m. in the antechamber of Victoria City Hall, 1 Centennial Square. For more information, go to victoria.ca.
Make your own seasonal wreath
Learn how to make a holiday wreath using traditional and unconventional materials at two workshops on Saturday.
• No experience is necessary and all materials are provided at the annual Wreath Workshop at Scout House, a fundraiser for Scouts Canada’s Camp Barnard.
Enjoy hot apple cider and light refreshments while creating a traditional wreath with materials sourced from the camp property.
Admission is by donation. The drop-in workshop runs 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday at Scout House, 505 Marigold St. RSVP to [email protected] with the number of people in your party. For more information, go to campbarnard.ca.
• Learn how to be knotty by creating your own wreath out of a single piece of rope at the Nautical Wreath Workshop, Saturday at the Maritime Museum of B.C.
A workshop leader will be on hand to guide participants. All supplies are provided, including ribbon and decorations.
The cost for the workshop is $39.99 and it’s suitable for teens and older. The event runs 1 to 4 p.m. Saturday at the museum, 634 Humboldt St. If you miss it this week, the event repeats Dec. 8, 15 and 22. For more information, go to mmbc.bc.ca.
Nature-house events geared to kids
Kick off December by taking your young children to outdoor programs at Francis/King Regional Park in Saanich, Sunday and Wednesday.
• On Sunday, children five years and older can join What’s That Evergreen?, a guided walk that takes a closer look at the survival strategies of local evergreen plants. During the 90-minute guided walk, a CRD Regional Parks naturalist will talk about the most common local species and give children the lowdown on how the plants stay green all year.
The program is free to join. It runs 1 to 2:30 p.m. Sunday. Meet at the nature centre, off Munn Road.
• Wee Winter Ones is a guided walk geared to children five years and younger on Wednesday.
Children will be encouraged to explore the winter woods under the guidance of a CRD Regional Parks naturalist, using their senses to find creatures that live there.
Participants will also be treated to storytime and exploration at the Francis/King Nature Centre.
Although there is no fee for this program for children ages five and younger, parents and caregivers need to pre-register by Nov. 30, as space is limited.
The event runs 10 to 11 a.m. Dec. 5. Participants are advised to arrive 10 minutes before the start of either program and leave pets at home. For more information, go to crd.bc.ca/parks-events.
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