Gently Down the Seymour

The Gently Down the Seymour (GDS) education program is run in the spring at the Seymour River Fish Hatchery. The Seymour Salmonid Society raises money each year to allow this unique education experience to be offered for free to elementary aged students around the Vancouver area.

Gently Down the Seymour (GDS) is a field trip program designed to enhance the learning and understanding of students participating in the Salmonids in the Classroom program (Fisheries and Oceans Canada). This program is developed to give students unique, hands-on learning experience and the opportunity to observe salmon in their natural wilderness habitat as well as in a working salmon hatchery.

Gently Down the Seymour Education Program, Demonstration of salmon spawning

Students learn about salmonids and their life in the Seymour Watershed through four different component concepts:

Forest Ecology
Stream Habitat
Aquatic Invertebrates
Hatchery operations

Observations, measurements, investigations, and study techniques are employed individually as well as in a group giving students a chance to have direct personal experience with the living and non-living components of the land.

Gently Down the Seymour Education Program, Measuring the water depth of a stream in waders

Typically, students will get the opportunity to:

observe an old-growth coast forest setting
identify different things found in the surroundings
measure the physical features of a salmon stream
collect and identify aquatic invertebrates; the food for salmon fry
tour through and witness a working salmon hatchery

To see more images of our GDS program please look at our Gently Down the Seymour Gallery.

Teachers: To find out more about the salmon in the classroom program please go to Salmonids in the Classroom.

There are also teaching resources for Primary students at Stream to Sea.

We would like to take the opportunity to thank the many sponsors of this program - some of whom are listed below. Without their support this porgram would not be able to continue.
		Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) donation of $5000 to the 2010 program
		TD Friends of the Environment - donation of $9000 to the 2010 program
		North Shore Optimist Club - donation of $2000 to the 2010 program

The Seymour Salmonid Society is able to accept donations through "Canada Helps". Make a donation and get a printable tax receipt online. Help support the Seymour Salmonid Society today, you can choose the area you wish your funding to go towards: education, maintenance, habitat projects or hatchery operations.