March 2013 Meeting: Tour of the Marine Science Center in Poulsbo

[halmus]

Tour of Poulsbo Marine Science Center



Date: Saturday, March 16th
Time: 1:00 - 4:00p.m.
Location: Liberty Bay waterfront in downtown
18743 Front St. NE, Poulsbo, WA
360-598-4460​

We are going to take a tour of the aquarium there at the center and get a behind the scene tour of the "guts" that make the system work. They also have a floating platform we will see that is used for students in their education program. Most of their tanks are cold water systems that reflect the bio-load of the Puget Sound region. They also have one warm water tank. The tour and visit at the center will take around two hours.

After that, we're going to convoy down to the Shark Reef in Silverdale:​

3656 NW Munson St
Silverdale, WA 98383​

Disclaimer: Many PSAS events are instructional in nature, but we are NOT certified electricians, plumbers, or experts in marine biology. Please consult a qualified electrician before doing electrical work on your house and tanks. Your safety and the health of your aquarium inhabitants is our primary concern. All events are subject to a change in time or in location in the event of extenuating circumstances. We will do our very best to update the site to reflect any changes in venue or time.

 

[user 26995]

Hey, so I'm excited about this meeting. Who all is planning on going?

 

[halmus]

I'm thinking about going. Does that count?

 

[user 26995]

I'm thinking about going. Does that count?

Only thinking? lol...NO!

I am assuming Jon is going to be there.

 

[blk822822]

I'm planning on going ........

 

[NemCrazy]

My daughter and I are going to be there for sure! This meeting is right up our alley Heck I thought that pic up top was one of mine lol.

 

[halmus]

I'm sorry I didn't make this clear in the original announcement. My fault. This meeting is free and open to the public. This isn't a PSAS only event, although we'll be glad to see some familiar faces. We'll be glad to see everyone tomorrow. Looking forward to it.

 

[NemCrazy]

Well shoot running late a bit but stoked see you all there!

 

[user 26995]

Well that was fun! Great tour, and great info. I will be swinging by there more often.
It was great to see everyone there too.

 

[halmus]

Thanks to everyone that could make it out for the day. And thanks to Brian for lining up the meeting for us even though he couldn't make it. He gave me the month off for planning, which is much appreciated.


Patric gave a great tour and the center is worth the trip to those of you that couldn't make it this weekend. I didn't get a chance to look around the down town, but it looks like an awesome place to spend the day. In fact, my wife and I might be going back up next Sat to donate a few corals and spend the day checking out the town.


If you do make it up there, Patric is the guy that makes everything happen at the center. He works hard to keep the place going. Let him know you're from the PSAS, he'll be the gentleman with the beard. He was happy to have us stop by. Also, if you have a few dollars to spare, the center operates on donations only. There is no entrance fee.


Eric down at the Shark Reef was glad to see us as well. I forgot to call and remind him we'd be stopping by so he was a little surprised to see a party break out at the store like that. Me and Devin pretty much cleared out one tank of LR. I went back for seconds. I'm working on gathering materials for a few long term projects and the rock was too pretty to pass up. His store is looking great. He had tons of coral and one of the biggest bubble corals I've even seen. It was almost obscene how big it was. I didn't ask the price on that piece but it would make an awesome addition to a tank if you had the room.


I'll get pictures up within the week. I'm really busy until Friday.

 

[blk822822]

That was fun. Had a good time, and now my wife really wants a cold water tank. I may have to start making a list of equipment to start one.

 

[halmus]

edited..............................................

 

[halmus]

Bill-

I don't know if you already had a chance to meet Paul, he was there yesterday. He's a PSAS member but he also started his own club called:

​

He would be a great source of information on how to get started. He'd love to see the progress on the PSAS boards as well, but most of us at the PSAS don't have the experience he does with these systems. Keep us informed if you do start one. I think it will be a growing trend in the hobby in general. Maybe we can start a sub-section at the PSAS owned forum (thePSAS.org) so people can start posting up there, but we don't want to steel Paul's thunder on this topic. Good luck.

 

[halmus]

Sorry for the double post. I'm not sure how that happened.

 

[NemCrazy]

Bill I'd be happy to help. I was excited to go and it didn't disappoint. His biotope displays were spot on. And his non sweating glass displays. They were the first single paine glass Coldwater tanks that I've seen. Between that and the advent of thermo electric chillers that can cool glass tanks without drilling it gives me hope that this side of the reef will grow feel free to add to the buzz at Coldwater reefers. Btw I'm thoroughly enjoys being part of the PSAS. It's great having people to share the experience with. So if there is a coldwater subset on Psas you know I'll be there

 

[halmus]

Here's a little recap of the meeting:

The building is in downtown Poulsbo which is a pretty cool little town.

We started off learning a little about the history of the facility. This is the director of the center. He's a really generous and personable guy.

There's a touch pool in the front for kids. Everything had spawned the night before so the water was a little cloudy.

The jelly Kriesel

The lab where some of the science happens has a viewing window. There was also a monitor showing some of the creatures currently under the microscope.

The back of the facilities where some of the filtration and water processing takes place

It's defiantly worth the trip. It's only a short ferry ride from the Seattle area.​