See you at the ‘fin’ish line!

In one of the world’s most impressive athletic endeavors, thousands of spawning salmon are making their way up coastal rivers this fall to spawn. Many have travelled hundreds to thousands of kilometers during their long voyage at sea. As they near their natal streams, they face the most grueling leg of their journey. It is here that these elite athletes will expend every last ounce of energy they have to surmount obstacles such as waterfalls, evade predators, and vanquish competitors.

At 3 hours into a 3.5 hour training run, my friend, Rachel, and I can empathize with these aquatic marathoners. Our muscles ache, our knees are sore and we feel that, like them, we are fighting an upstream battle. Unlike the salmon, however, Rachel and I have undertaken this exercise for fun. Together, we are training to run in the Good Life Marathon as part of a team representing Raincoast.

The benefits one might ask? Above giving us reasons to get outside, increase our fitness levels, enjoy long conversations, and consume a few extra snacks, we are excited to be part of Raincoast’s initiative to raise funds for youth outreach. These programs provide important opportunities for young people to become informed and inspired about conserving salmon.

During the last weeks of training, we’ll be thinking about the salmon and hoping that our own marathon might help them complete theirs in the future. To that end, as race day draws near, we will continue trying hard to collect pledges.

To support Raincoast’s Salmon Run, please follow this link:  https://www.raincoast.org/get-involved/royal-victoria-marathon/

You can help

Raincoast’s in-house scientists, collaborating graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and professors make us unique among conservation groups. We work with First Nations, academic institutions, government, and other NGOs to build support and inform decisions that protect aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems, and the wildlife that depend on them. We conduct ethically applied, process-oriented, and hypothesis-driven research that has immediate and relevant utility for conservation deliberations and the collective body of scientific knowledge.

We investigate to understand coastal species and processes. We inform by bringing science to decision-makers and communities. We inspire action to protect wildlife and wildlife habitats.