Bowen Island is a popular spot for a day trip or weekend getaway for many Sea to Sky residents, but have you ever wondered what's going on below its waters' surface?
As it turns out, there's a lot more hustle and bustle than you might expect from the quiet island.
Bob Turner, a longtime Bowen Island resident and recently retired geological scientist, threw on his diving gear and grabbed his camera to give viewers an up-close-and-personal look with busy Mannion Bay's marine ecosystem in a new short film, titled "Exploring our Estuary."
As Turner explains in the video, "An estuary is the mixing zone where a river delivers its nutrient-rich waters and sediments to the ocean, creating a rich ecosystem. Terminal Creek is by far Bowen's biggest stream system, so Mannion Bay is by far Bowen's biggest estuary."
In a message to Pique, Turner said the project was a surprise for him.
"I’ve long overlooked the wild values of Mannion Bay/Deep Bay on Bowen Island because of its many waterfront homes, docks and moored boats. But over the past few years, good things have happened in the Bay through community involvement with moorage management, underwater clean-ups, boat salvage, and eelgrass restoration," he wrote. "So this summer I explored it – from Terminal Creek, through the Lagoon, to the Bay – and saw it for what it is – a rich mixing zone of stream and ocean. It was an eye-opener for me – so much wild living, so near."
Check out the video for yourself below:
