Details have now been sent to members, with the advice: bring your rain gear!
When: 8:00AM, Sunday, October 19, 2025
Travel: Victoria members meet at Helmcken Park & Ride at 8AM to
arrange carpooling. ‘Up Islanders’ meet at Old Farm Market south of
Duncan at 9AM. Nanaimo folks meet us onsite.
Please RSVP to vicpalaeo@gmail.com and indicate which meeting place you’ve chosen.
Members should check their email to find details for our fieldtrip this weekend. Please note the early start time (7:50AM) if you are leaving from Helmcken Park & Ride in Victoria.
We will rendezvous with up island members at the Co-op at 4A Alberni Highway at 10:00AM. We will make a special stop in Duncan if anyone wants to carpool from there.
VIPS members welcome to join us. Please RSVP at vicpalaeo@gmail.com.
Save the date. Details will be sent to members a week prior to the fieldtrip.
The VicPS fieldtrip this month will be to the lovely Chemainus River. The site requires a 15-minute walk on a gentle to moderate grade from the parking lot to the river, the ability to traverse a rocky riverbank, and it’s possible you may want to wade across the slippery rocks of the river to the other side. It is appropriate for families, and children old enough to be around the river. All children must be in the company of an adult.
Expect beautiful views, wet feet and a high probability of finding specimens. Sunday is forecast to be a bit cooler than mid-week, but do bring and use sunscreen.
Details are in the email that each member should have received; contact Jerri Wilkins if you have not received the email. Please RSVP.
The monthly VicPS meetings are on summer hiatus and the focus is on fieldtrips, public education, and the Symposium.
Join Corbin Rolfe as he leads his first official VicPS fieldtrip! Please look for an email from Corbin with details of the trip, closer to the date.
VicPS has been invited back for a second year to provide a ‘fossil field day’ for kids in the Cowichan Valley. Last year our volunteers had a blast introducing kids to the ancient marine life on Mt. Tzouhalem in Duncan. If you like participating in public education, Jerri will reach out closer to the date seeking volunteers. No experience necessary – we all learn by doing!
We’ll visit one of the most beautiful and productive sites on our annual field trip schedule, and one Jerri looks forward to visiting every year. It’s a moderate walk and a good site for families, and for swimming (sometimes on purpose). Look for the invite closer to the date.
This is our annual opportunity to join the Capital Regional District and nature-based organizations for a day of public education focused on the past and present animals and ecosystems of Island View Beach (Cowichan Head) on the Saanich Peninsula. Closer to the date Carol will be looking for volunteers to hang out at Island View Beach for the day….tough job! If you attended the May 18th fieldtrip, this is your opportunity to test your memory by sharing knowledge with others. Jerri know who you are… we will be in touch!
This site on the shore is easily accessible, and for those with patience and a good eye, it can reveal well-preserved gastropods and occasionally an ammonite. Details will be provided in a fieldtrip guide closer to the date.
For this event, we join the Capital Regional District and nature-based organizations at Elk/Beaver Lake to talk about all things slithery, slimy and scaly. VicPS brings a new perspective to this annual event, exploring with kids why we don’t see snakes and frogs and lizards in the local fossil record. Or do we? Volunteer to help Carol, and you’ll learn the answers. She will reach out for volunteers closer to the date.
This bi-annual meeting of paleontological researchers is four days of all things paleo as it relates to Vancouver Island and BC. Presentations on the latest scientific research, scientific posters, workshops and fieldtrips and lots of like-minded professionals and enthusiasts to meet. Check out the details below, and sign up today:
15th BC Paleontological Symposium 2025 v2 – Vancouver Island Paleontological Society
The VicPS fieldtrip this month will be close to Victoria: on the Saanich Peninsula. Paid members will have received details concerning the field trip as an email.
Please follow the emailed instructions and RSVP your intention to participate.
VicPS now has 40 members, the largest membership in the history of VicPS!
With no speaker scheduled for the April 9th meeting, our President will report out on recent activities – we did just host a Fossil Fair! – and catch us all up, as well as introduce new members to our Society.
The meeting link will be sent via separate email to paid members.
We are in the final stages of determining which workshop will take place on April 12th, and details of the April 20th fieldtrip will be circulated a week in advance. Look to your email for further details.
Here are the dates of the proposed VicPS field trips. Members will have received details regarding the planned destinations. Feedback to our president on this topic is encouraged, and RSVP to the field trip leader is desired prior to each trip.
| Date | Time | Trip Leader |
|---|---|---|
| April 21, Sunday | 8:00 am | Jerri Wilkins |
| May 5, Sunday | 8:00 am | John Kitson |
| May 19, Sunday | Jerri Wilkins | |
| June 5 – 6, Wed. – Thurs. | John Kitson | |
| June 16, Sunday | Jerri Wilkins | |
| June 30, Sunday | John Kitson | |
| July 21, Sunday | Jerri Wilkins | |
| July 28, Sunday | John Kitson | |
| August 18, Sunday | Jerri Wilkins | |
| August 25, Sunday | John Kitson | |
| September 15, Sunday | Jerri Wilkins | |
| September 29, Sunday | John Kitson | |
| October 20, Sunday | Jerri Wilkins | |
| November 17, Sunday | Jerri Wilkins |
The present snowy conditions at certain places up island may cause the field trip plan to change. Please ensure you check for emailed updates about the field trip before you set off to join us on Sunday morning.
| When: | 9 AM, Sunday, January 21st, 2024 |
| Travel: | Meet at Helmcken Park & Ride at 9 AM to arrange carpooling. |
| Where: | Paid members will please check their email for more details. |
| Equipment: | Hammer large enough to break concretions, chisel, wrapping paper, masking tape, marker, GPS and notebook for recording details. Bring lunch, water, snacks, dress for changes in weather and wear shoes appropriate for gravel, rock and slopes. |
Our website now has a page that shows the Google calendar for the vicpalaeo@gmail.com account that our president generally uses to communicate by email with members. All those events that we’re being notifed about can be found listed there. Note that field trips will continue to lack info about where we’re going; look to your email for those details as the field trip date approaches.
From the top level menu, Events->Calendar of Events should get you to https://vicpalaeo.org/events/.
