A splash of fun at Fort Rodd Hill

For more information on Fab Forts and the remaining summer programs such as Learn to Camp, English Car Affair in the Park, and the Lantern Tour hosted at Fort Rodd Hill, visit www.pc.gc.ca/fortroddhill or 250-478-5849.

Next weekend the normally serene grounds of Fort Rodd Hill National Historic Site will turn to a scream fest as hordes of children engage in Victoria’s largest water gun fight.

The bone-drenching competition is a part of Fab Forts, an annual Parks Canada initiative created to celebrate the many historic and military forts scattered across Canada.

“We wanted to do something to get the adrenaline pumping. What gets the blood going more than a water gun fight?” says Lara Cohlmeyer, Interpretation Coordinator for Fort Rodd Hill. “The grounds of the fort are beautiful and expansive, so we thought we’d put them to use.”

In years past Fort Rodd Hill has featured military re-enactments and presentations; this year they wanted to try something a little different.

Beyond the team-based Storm the Fort there will be  Capture the Flag, target practice, face painting and music.

“For many people this will be their first Fab Forts, and we wanted to show them a side of the fort they’ve never seen before,” she says. “It’s one thing to walk around and observe the history in this place, but it’s another to run around and soak your friends in it.”

Whether you’re looking to duke it out in the water gun fights, or just relax with some sunshine and live music, Cohlmeyer says the event has something for everyone.

“This fort is for the community,” she says. “We want people to come down and soak in some local history in any way they want.”

Gracing Vancouver Island’s coastline since its construction in 1850, Fort Rodd Hill has long stood as a bastion of Canadian naval and military history. Cohlmeyer says initiatives such as Fab Forts will connect people with this history, and build interest in where our community came from.

“Places like Fort Rodd Hill are a great way to get an insight into how life used to be,” she says. “We’re very lucky to even have access to pieces of history like the fort, so hopefully people will take advantage of that privilege.”

The event costs nothing more than the Fort’s general admission, and will run from 11 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

For more information on Fab Forts and the remaining summer programs such as Learn to Camp, English Car Affair in the Park, and the Lantern Tour hosted at Fort Rodd Hill, visit www.pc.gc.ca/fortroddhill or 250-478-5849.

Shawn O’Hara, Staff Writer