Sunnyside Acres Heritage Society
"Dedicated in perpetuity for its intrinsic and heritage values."
Upcoming Events
2025 Environmental Extravaganza Events
Following is a list of events our society and the Friends of Semiahmoo Trail are hosting as part of the City of Surrey's Environmental Extravaganza. We hope to see you at some of these events!
Semiahmoo Trail Nature Walk | April 19, 1:30-3:30pm
Stroll along the stunning Semiahmoo Heritage Trail! Explore towering trees, fascinating wildlife, and the rich history of this old wagon road. Connect with nature and the past! All ages.
Semiahmoo Heritage Trail (2250 150 St). Meet in the Good Shepherd Church parking lot.
Hosted by our friends from the Friends of Semiahmoo Trail.
Accessible Trillium Walk | April 30, 1-3pm
Spot trillium flowers on an 800-metre accessible trail, perfect for all abilities. Enjoy an easy walk with nature guides and interpretive stops along the way. Drop-in. All ages.
Sunnyside Acres Urban Forest Park (Wally Ross Trail parking lot, north side of 24 Ave between 144 St and 148 St)
Hosted by Sunnyside Acres Heritage Society.
Ten Native Trees to Know | May 7, 6:30-8pm
Join our guides for a nature walk to discover important local trees, plus shrubs and plants along the trail! Drop-in. All ages.
Sunnyside Acres Urban Forest Park (Wally Ross Trail parking lot, north side of 24 Ave between 144 St and 148 St)
Hosted by Sunnyside Acres Heritage Society.
Learn About Laminated Root Rot | May 14, 6:30-8pm
Join biologist Jeff Fournier to explore the fungus that has been affecting trees in Sunnyside Acres since the 1980s. Learn about how it may impact your garden and discover trees that are more resistant. Drop-in. All ages.
Sunnyside Acres Urban Forest Park (Wally Ross Trail parking lot, north side of 24 Ave between 144 St and 148 St)
Hosted by Sunnyside Acres Heritage Society.
Forest Bingo | May 21, 6:30-7:30pm
Stamp your bingo card as we spot and identify plants, trees, animals, and birds on this forest adventure. Along the way, you’ll discover how everything in the forest is connected with nothing going to waste. Drop-in. All ages.
Sunnyside Acres Urban Forest Park (Wally Ross Trail parking lot, north side of 24 Ave between 144 St and 148 St)
Hosted by Sunnyside Acres Heritage Society.
Birding in Sunnyside Acres | May 28, 9-11am
Discover the wonders of birding. Look and listen for owls, hawks, woodpeckers, chickadees, and wrens as you stroll through the lush forest. Drop-in. All ages.
Sunnyside Acres Urban Forest Park (Wally Ross Trail parking lot, north side of 24 Ave between 144 St and 148 St)
Hosted by Sunnyside Acres Heritage Society.
Sunnyside Acres Open House | May 31, 1-4pm
Get a bird’s eye view of the urban forest in a bucket truck. Meet grassroots volunteers who protect Surrey’s urban forest, explore with a forest fairy, enjoy nature crafts, cookies, face painting, and more. Drop-in. All ages.
Sunnyside Acres Urban Forest Park (Wally Ross Trail parking lot, north side of 24 Ave between 144 St and 148 St)
Hosted by Sunnyside Acres Heritage Society.
Past Events
November 16th: Annual Planting Day
Come and support Sunnyside Acres
Saturday November 16, 2024: 10am - Noon
Help us look after the forest for five minutes to two hours!
Please join the Sunnyside Acres Heritage Society for its annual planting day on Saturday, November 16th, 2024, from 10am to noon.
The planting will follow on from last year's planting day, adding trees and shrubs to the area near the South Surrey athletic track. We welcome all volunteers for five minutes to two hours! Join us at any time to plant, socialize, and learn some plant identification skills from SNAP.
Plenty of free parking near 18A Avenue and 146 Street, near South Surrey Athletic Field. From there, follow the signs to the trail head. The event takes place rain or shine so dress for the weather (and be prepared for your clothes to get dirty).
The City of Surrey will provide gloves, tools, and native shrubs to plant.
Thank you to all who came to Environmental Extravaganza Events and our Annual Open House
Events that took place in Sunnyside Acres Urban Forest as part of Surrey's 2024 Environmental Extravaganza:
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Accessible Trillium Walk: Wednesday May 1, 1:00 - 3:00 pm
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Animals of the Forest: Wednesday May 8, 6:30 - 7:30 pm
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Learn to Identify Native Plants: Wednesday May 15, 6:30 - 8:00 pm
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The Life of a Cedar Tree: Wednesday May 22, 6:30 - 8:00 pm
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Birding in Sunnyside Acres: Wednesday May 29, 9:00 - 11:00 am
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Annual Open House: Saturday June 1, 1:00 - 4:00 pm
Fall Planting Event 2023
EVERYBODY WELCOME - STAY FOR TEN MINUTES OR TWO HOURS
Annual Open House: Saturday June 3, 2023, 1:00 - 4:00 pm.
Over 200 people enjoyed the many stalls and activities at the annual Sunnyside Acres Open House! Community members had the opportunity to learn more about the forest and other Surrey natural areas, listen to forest-themed stories from City of Surrey library staff, enjoy a forest walk with a forest fairy (flying in from SNAP) and feel like they themselves were flying with a ride in a bucket truck to see the forest canopy. Families had fun making nature crafts, enjoying complementary cookies and face painting. Thank you to the SNAP team and the many local societies that made this such a great day. See you next year!
As part of the City of Surrey's Environmental Extravaganza: Wednesday, May 17th, Birding in Sunnyside Acres
Brown Creeper, Sunnyside Acres, May 10, 2023
Autumn Planting Event 2022
Early November's atmospheric river brought two days of non-stop rain to South Surrey, somewhat softening the ground at the site of the 2022 planting event. The rain stopped pouring just a few hours before the event started.
During a sunny Saturday morning more than 25 volunteers as well as City of Surrey staff and SNAP members introduced over 300 new plants to the urban forest. It was wonderful to see new faces, and have so many people, young and old helping to secure the future of the forest. We even had the help of Dante the dog (whose digging skills were far superior to the shovels).
Special thanks to the Fall 2022 SNAP team who had spent an incredibly wet Friday unloading all the plants and mulch, and who then came back on Saturday with smiling faces to help plant, staying late to finish the mulching.
Part of the area planted at 2021 Planting Event
Autumn Planting Event 2021
The 2021 Community Planting Event was a great success, and was well attended by some enthusiastic volunteers from the following:
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Semiahmoo Rotary Club
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Earl Marriott Global Citizens Club
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Surrey Youth Stewardship Squad
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Surrey Natural Areas Partnership (SNAP)
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City of Surrey, Parks Recreation and Culture, Urban Forestry
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Sunnyside Acres Heritage Society
A total of 300 trees and shrubs, all native species to the area, were planted.
Luckily, Mother Nature waited until the planting was nearly done to “water”the new plants.
Environmental Extravaganza, Spring 2021
"Environmental Extravaganza"
As part of Surrey’s Environmental
Extravaganza, a self-guided walk along Sunnyside Acres Urban Forest's Douglas Fir Trail will be the feature of the week. Signs with a QR code that can be read with a smart phone link the walker to various natural features found on the trail. This will self-guided walk be available from Monday May 17 until May 23rd.
This is Sunnyside Acres Urban
Forest's week - get out and enjoy!
Autumn Planting Event 2020
Date: Saturday November 7, 2020
Location: 148th Street and Rotary Way (22nd Avenue near the ball park).
Special thanks: Special thanks to all who came out for the Fall 2020 planting event, including Sunnyside Acres Heritage Society, the City of Surrey's Natural Areas Partnership (SNAP), Surrey Youth Stewardship Squad (SYSS) and community members.
We had 19 participants and 100 plants were successfully planted in the Sunnyside Acres Urban Forest. Many hands made light work!
2019 Planting Party
Thank you to all of our volunteers, the City of Surrey, and the Rotary Club for all of your support in making the 2019 planting party a huge success.
We had more than 40 volunteers come out. Together, we managed to dig out weeds and plant 223 trees behind the South Surrey Recreation Centre.
Scroll through the gallery to the right to see photos from this event.
