| Strait of Georgia | |
|---|---|
 The Strait of Georgia with sediment from theFraser River clearly visible. | |
  Strait of Georgia  Strait of Georgia | |
| Location | British Columbia andWashington |
| Coordinates | 49°17′39″N123°48′26″W / 49.29417°N 123.80722°W /49.29417; -123.80722 |
| Part of | Salish Sea |
| River sources | Fraser River,Squamish River |
| Ocean/sea sources | Pacific Ocean |
| Basin countries | Canada andUnited States |
| Surface area | 6,800 km2 (2,600 sq mi) |
| Average depth | 156 m (512 ft) |
| Max. depth | 420 m (1,380 ft)[1] |
| Residence time | 160 days[2] |
| Sections/sub-basins | Malaspina Strait |
| Settlements | Vancouver,Surrey,Richmond,Delta,Nanaimo,Courtenay |
TheStrait of Georgia (French:Détroit de Géorgie) or theGeorgia Strait[3] is an arm of theSalish Sea betweenVancouver Island and the extreme southwestern mainland coast ofBritish Columbia, Canada, and the extreme northwestern mainland coast ofWashington, United States. It is approximately 240 kilometres (150 mi) long and varies in width from 20 to 58 kilometres (12 to 36 mi).[4] Along with theStrait of Juan de Fuca andPuget Sound, it is a constituent part of theSalish Sea.
Archipelagos and narrow channels mark each end of the Strait of Georgia, theGulf Islands andSan Juan Islands in the south, and theDiscovery Islands in the north. The main channels to the south areBoundary Pass,Haro Strait andRosario Strait, which connect the Strait of Georgia to theStrait of Juan de Fuca. In the north,Discovery Passage is the main channel connecting the Strait of Georgia toJohnstone Strait. The strait is a major navigation channel on the west coast ofNorth America, owing to the presence of the port ofVancouver, and also due to its role as the southern entrance to the Intracoastal route known as theInside Passage.
TheUnited States Geological Survey defines the southern boundary of the Strait of Georgia as a line running from East Point onSaturna Island toPatos Island,Sucia Island, andMatia Island, then to Point Midgley onLummi Island. This line touches the northern edges ofRosario Strait, which leads south to theStrait of Juan de Fuca, andBoundary Pass, which leads south toHaro Strait and the Strait of Juan de Fuca.[5]
The Strait of Georgia has a mean depth of 156 m (512 ft) and average surface area of 6,800 km2 (2,600 sq mi). The Ballenas Basin in the centre of the strait reaches a maximum depth of 420 m (1,380 ft) approximately 15 km (9.3 mi) north ofNanaimo.[1][6]
TheFraser River accounts for roughly 80 percent of the freshwater entering the strait. Water circulates in the strait in a generally counterclockwise direction.[1]
The strait contains several major islands, the largest by far beingTexada Island at 300.45 km2 (116.00 sq mi). Other major islands includeNelson Island,Denman Island,Lasqueti Island, andHornby Island.
The term "Gulf of Georgia" includes waters other than the Georgia Strait proper, such as the inter-insular straits and channels of theGulf Islands, and may refer to communities on the shore of southern Vancouver Island. As defined byGeorge Vancouver in 1792, the Gulf of Georgia included all the inland waters beyond the eastern end of the Strait of Juan de Fuca, includingPuget Sound,Bellingham Bay, the waters around theSan Juan Islands, as well as the Strait of Georgia.[7]
First Nations communities have surrounded the Strait of Georgia for thousands of years. The first European exploration of the area was undertaken by CaptainJose Maria Narvaez and PilotJuan Carrasco ofSpain in 1791. At this timeFrancisco de Eliza gave the strait the name "Gran Canal de Nuestra Señora del Rosario la Marinera."
In 1792, it was renamed forKing George III[8] as the "Gulf of Georgia" byGeorge Vancouver ofGreat Britain, duringhis extensive expedition along the west coast ofNorth America. Vancouver designated the mainland in this region as New Georgia and areas farther north as New Hanover and New Bremen.
TheJune 23, 1946, Vancouver Island earthquake shocked the Strait of Georgia region, causing the bottom ofDeep Bay to sink between 3 and 26 m (9.8 and 85.3 ft).
The two busiest routes of theBC Ferries system cross the strait, betweenTsawwassen (south of Vancouver) andSwartz Bay (nearVictoria) and betweenHorseshoe Bay (north of Vancouver) andNanaimo.
The Strait of Georgia is known as a premierscuba diving andwhale watching location.[citation needed]
In 1967, the Georgia Strait inspired the name of Vancouver's alternative newspaper,The Georgia Straight, which has been published continuously since.
Towns and cities on the strait includeCampbell River,Courtenay,Comox,Qualicum Beach,Parksville,Lantzville, andNanaimo on the western shore, as well asPowell River, Sechelt,Gibsons, and Greater Vancouver on the east.
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Across the border in theUnited States,Bellingham, Washington and other communities also lie on the eastern shore. Other settlements on Vancouver Island (such asDuncan) and the mainland are separated from Georgia Strait itself by islands and lesser straits but are often spoken of as being in the Strait of Georgia region.
BC Ferries operates ferry services connectingVancouver Island with the mainland. Notable lines includeDuke Point-Tsawwassen,Departure Bay-Horseshoe Bay, andLittle River-Westview. Minor ferry operators andwater taxis provide service to minor islands dotting the strait.
In March 2008, theChemainus First Nation proposed renaming the strait the "Salish Sea", an idea that reportedly met with approval by B.C.'s Aboriginal Relations MinisterMike de Jong, who pledged to put it before theB.C. cabinet for discussion. Making the name "Salish Sea" official required a formal application to theGeographical Names Board of Canada.[9] A parallel American movement promoting the name had a different definition, combining of theStrait of Juan de Fuca andPuget Sound as well as the Strait of Georgia and related waters under the name Salish Sea. This latter definition was made official in 2009 by geographic boards of Canada and the United States.
In October 2009, the Washington state Board of Geographic Names approved the Salish Sea toponym, not to replace the names of the Strait of Georgia, Puget Sound, and Strait of Juan de Fuca, but instead as a collective term for all three.[10] The British Columbia Geographical Names Office passed a resolution recommending that the name only be adopted by theGeographical Names Board of Canada should its US counterpart approve the name change.[10][11][12] TheUnited States Board on Geographic Names approved the name on November 12, 2009[13] and Canada approved it in 2010.
Media related toStrait of Georgia at Wikimedia Commons
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