Pacific Undersea Gardens facts for kids
The Pacific Undersea Gardens was a unique attraction located in the Inner Harbour right in the heart of downtown Victoria. It was a special place where you could explore the underwater world without getting wet! The Oak Bay Marine Group owned and ran this cool spot.
Contents
Exploring the Undersea Gardens
The Pacific Undersea Gardens was a huge 150-foot floating building. It was moved from the Oak Bay Marina to its spot in the Inner Harbour. Visitors would go down about 15 feet (4.6 m) (that's like a two-story building!) under the water. From there, they could look through big windows and see amazing sea creatures from the coast of British Columbia living in their natural home.
There was even a special tidal pond where you could gently touch sea stars and sea anemones. It was a great way to learn about these fascinating animals up close.
The Undersea Theatre Show
At one end of the Undersea Gardens was the Undersea Theatre. Here, visitors could sit down and watch a live show through the aquarium windows. A guide would welcome everyone and explain all about the different sea animals swimming around.
A diver, wearing a special mask that let them talk, would also be in the water during the show. They would guide you through the underwater world and even handle some of the animals. You could see crabs, Sea Urchins, sea stars, sea anemones, cabezon, and Lingcod.
The two most famous stars of the show were the Wolf Eels and a giant Pacific Octopus named "Armstrong." The Undersea Theatre show lasted about 20 minutes. The whole visit usually took around 45 to 60 minutes.
Amazing Marine Life and Exhibits
The Pacific Undersea Gardens was home to more than 5,000 different kinds of sea creatures from British Columbia. You could see many types of fish, crabs, sea stars, sea anemones, Sea Urchins, Sea Cucumbers, and Scallops. Of course, the famous Wolf Eels and the Giant Pacific Octopus were also there!
Underwater Worlds to Discover
In one exhibit, you could watch fish like Red Snapper, Rock Fish, Cabezon, Lingcod, Greenlings, Sculpins, Perch, and Halibut. They swam through a beautiful kelp forest, surrounded by different sea stars, anemones, and crabs.
Another exhibit featured a huge group of about a thousand Pacific Salmon. They swam around the remains of a sunken ship. In this exhibit, you could even see the salmon's life cycle as they laid eggs and young salmon hatched.
There was also an exhibit with ghostly gardens of white and crimson anemones. Among these beautiful plants, the fierce-looking Wolf Eel would lurk. And gliding gracefully through the reef was the Giant Pacific Octopus, which is the largest octopus in the world!
Community Events
Every year, the Pacific Undersea Gardens and its amazing volunteers organized an annual Clean-Up of Victoria's Inner Harbour. Volunteers included divers from the Pacific Navy Fleet Diving Unit, the Coast Guard Auxiliary 35 Unit, and local divers. This big operation took months to plan, but the actual clean-up was usually done in just two hours! During one clean-up, divers removed about a hundred pounds of garbage from the harbour. They found all sorts of things, like suitcases, pants, bicycles, tires, boat batteries, cell phones, shoes, and even a toilet!
History of the Gardens
The Pacific Undersea Gardens first opened its doors in 1964 at the Oak Bay Marina. Later, in 1969, it moved to its well-known spot in Victoria's Inner Harbour.
Sadly, its last day of operation was October 17, 2013. It closed because the building was getting old, and it would have cost too much money to make the improvements needed to keep it safe and up-to-date. After it closed and was removed from the Inner Harbour, a new ferry service called the V2V ferry took over its space. This ferry offers a three-hour luxury trip for passengers to downtown Vancouver.
Images for kids
-
The Pacific Undersea Gardens floating in Victoria's Inner Harbour.
-
The Pacific Undersea Gardens with the beautiful British Columbia Legislature Buildings in the background.
