Beautiful Bamfield, British Columbia

This year marked another chance to attend the Pacific Ecology and Evolution Conference out in Bamfield, British Columbia. Hosted by the Bamfield Marine Sciences Center, the conference provides an opportunity to tour this world-class facility and learn about the research of new and emerging scientists. After witnessing the beautiful views last year, I decided to bring my bridge camera with me this time. I was not disappointed; the weather was unseasonably warm and clear, which made for beautiful photos.

Below is a photoblog of the weekend. I haven’t included any pictures or details from the conference for privacy reasons, but hopefully, you can enjoy the beautiful scenery I was fortunate enough to experience.

There are only two ways to get to Bamfield: you have to take a boat or drive several hours through rough logging roads. Because our trip was organized through the conference, we were able to take a chartered ship to the Marine Sciences Center. We met the ship at Port Alberni and cast off at sunset. Even the views from the ship were spectacular.

We got into Bamfield close to midnight, and we had to walk through the dark campus to get to the lodge. Bright and early the next morning, we were whisked off to the conference center for a day of presenting academic research. At lunch and in the evening we had free time to explore the research station and take in the beautiful weather.

The photo above is a picture from the Whale Lab, the main classroom at the center. On the wall, there are skeletons of different marine mammals, including whales, seals, and otters.

After all the presentations were finished, we had some free time to trek to Brady’s Beach. The sun was low in the sky by that point and the views were spectacular. It’s the type of scenery you envision when you think of the Pacific Northwest. We all walked along the beach, found animals in tidal pools, and enjoyed the unseasonably warm weather for February.