A watershed is a home for humans and non-humans, a shelter … a “Shed”

“A watershed is the area of land that drains surface water and groundwater to a common water body, such as a creek, stream, lake or the ocean. 

A functioning watershed slows, cleans, filters and stores water by allowing water to absorb into the ground. This process improves water quality, reduces risk of flooding, reduces risk for invasive species to establish and increases resilience within a changing climate.”

- from the Capital Regional District’s “Watershed Basics” 

Coastal Cutthroat Trout are one of the resilient species that live in the watershed. In 2023, sampling of CCT in Bilston, Metchosin, Pritchard and Hewitt Creeks showed that they are surviving despite drier, hotter summers.

Bilston Creek flows over Sitting Lady Falls, draining into the ocean at Witty’s Lagoon.

Photos courtesy of Bev Hall