Organ Crawl walking tour features historic pipes
Celebrate International Organ Day by joining Organ Crawl, a rare, informative and walkable tour of three historic pipe organs on Saturday.
The event is presented by the Victoria Chapter of the Royal Canadian College of Organists and led by Mark McDonald, assistant director of music at Christ Church Cathedral.
The walking tour includes three historical venues in close proximity to each other: Church of Our Lord, the main chapel at St. Ann’s Academy and Christ Church Cathedral.
Pre-registration is strongly recommended. The event has a cap on the number of spots available and registered participants will have priority.
Tickets are $20 for adults (ages 12 and up), $10 for Royal Canadian College of Organists members and $5 for children (ages 6 to 11). Tickets (cash only) are only available at the time of the event, just before the tour starts.
Meet at 9:30 a.m., with the tour starting at 10 a.m. Saturday at Church of Our Lord, 626 Blanshard St. The tour continues to St. Ann’s Academy, 835 Humboldt St., at 10:45 a.m. and Christ Church Cathedral, 930 Burdett Ave., at 11:30 a.m.
Proceeds of the event will be split between the Royal Canadian College of Organists Hart Memorial Scholarship Fund and the three venues.
For more information and to register, go to rcco-victoria.org.
Birthday party for Maritime Museum
The Maritime Museum of B.C. will be celebrating its 69th birthday with Community Day and admission by donation at the museum today.
There will be treats in the gallery and visitors can take the opportunity to see No Walk in the Woods: The History of the West Coast Trail, the museum’s newest exhibit.
“We first opened our doors on April 18, 1955, on Signal Hill, just outside the gates of the HMC Dockyard in Esquimalt. Since then, the museum has moved to Bastion Square, Humboldt Street, and finally, to our current 744 Douglas St. storefront location,” said executive director Brittany Vis.
“If you haven’t visited in years, come see how we’re using our small storefront to our full advantage and support our ongoing efforts to secure a permanent waterfront home.”
The new exhibit explores the 75-kilometre stretch of coastline from Bamfield to Port Renfrew and how it has evolved from a narrow telegraph track carved into the woods to one of the most popular hiking destinations on Vancouver Island.
On Community Day, admission will be by donation only. The event runs 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. today at the museum, 744 Douglas St. For more information, go to mmbc.bc.ca/programs-events.
Rock and alpine garden club show and sale
The Vancouver Island Rock and Alpine Garden Society is hosting its annual Spring Show and Plant Sale on Sunday at the Mary Winspear Community Centre in Sidney.
The show features a collection of rock and alpine, bog and succulent plants grown by club members. There will be examples of wild plants from mountains around the world, with all the exhibits either potted or arranged in troughs and miniature gardens.
The date of the event varies between March and May each year, to showcase a different range of plants. Early shows feature hardy evergreens such as Kabschia saxifrages and late ones contain campanulas and gentians.
The event includes a plant sale, with plants grown by specialty nurseries and members of the club. There will also be seed sales and an art display.
Admission is by donation. The event is open to the public 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday. The plant sale runs 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. The event takes place at the Mary Winspear Community Centre, 2243 Beacon Ave.
For more information, go to virags.com/the-spring-show.html.