Surrey dazzles crowds with the ninth annual Bear Creek Park Lights event
Approximately 1,000 people are expected to attend every night
Surrey hosts ninth annual Bear Creek Park Lights event. (Nicole Gonzalez Filos/Submitted)
The ninth annual Bear Creek Park Lights event is running this month from Nov. 5 to Nov. 19 at 4:30 to 9:30 pm, where people can experience an illuminated nature walk at night with stunning and colourful light displays around the park, enhancing its landscape and atmosphere.
Tickets can be booked online for the 30-minute walkarounds and proof of vaccination or masks are not required since it falls under the category of an outdoor event.
With the pandemic still ongoing and restrictions still in place, people are wondering what they can expect this year.
“We are trying to decrease the amount of gathering spaces, so there won’t be food trucks, there won’t be vendor booths,” says Mandy Hadfield, park operations coordinator for the City of Surrey.
“Realistically it’s about a nature walk with lights and we want people to just kind of come out and experience the lights this year.”
The original idea to host the Bear Creek Lights event was proposed in 2012 by a previous park operations coordinator.
“It started out as just a one-night activation as a kind of evening nature walk with a few lights, and it was something pretty small,” says Hadfield.
“Then we started to make it a little bit bigger. We ended up getting some sponsorship onboard, and over from 2016 to 2018 it began to grow in popularity and momentum. So we ended up being able to offer more nights to people,” she says.
Despite the setbacks from adjusting to pandemic restrictions, Hadfield says the park is planning to see about 1,000 people a night over the next two weeks. Another factor adding to its popularity is that it is free to attend for anyone interested in coming.
“We want to make sure people who don’t have $25 for tickets to go to a different show are able to come and see something,” says Hadfield.
The event was also made as a way for people to be out more during the colder weather, as there aren’t as many activities happening in the park during the winter compared to the summer months.
“We want to encourage people to get out in nature, and be healthy and connect to their local park, and this is a way to kind of do that and also give people something special to look at. So it’s really just a connection to nature and a chance to get out and enjoy your community,” says Hadfield.
“We’re really excited about the hype that it has seen.”
