Sunday Westerly

[gabrielb]

Slappy, you probably got the best break of the day, nice waves at 4ft tide, good to know it s there.

Darrell, probably the most advanced windsurfing for the day, we may need video for posterity as I dont think anyone will venture from Richmond to the strait like you do.

[Norvin]

Just a question about Gary Point Park: On Google Maps it looks like you'd be stuck in the river, how difficult is it to get upwind and out in the straight?

[gabrielb]

wind.JPG (51.7 KiB) Viewed 12863 times

... he may follow the canals to the right of jetty

front.JPG (64.51 KiB) Viewed 12863 times

[ShonanDB]

I usually sail in the river but you could work your way upwind to the section where the wood pilings end on the South side of the river and head out into the Strait. Getting out would be fairly easy but coming back could be the challenge if the wind drops as you would have to deal with the river current. I paddled out the small channel on the North side looking for surfable waves in the past but it was a lot of work. During an ebbing tide the river current can get up to about 8 knots. On a WNW day the wind blows straight up the river so you get rolling swell moving upriver, like a mini version of the Gorge. At low tide when the current is strong there is a lot going on and if you break something and you end up in the water for a while, you'll be pushed out towards the lighthouse and it will be a long trek back. The good part is that it is shallow on either side of the river for a long way so as long as you work your way out of the main shipping channel, you could feasibly swim/walk/carry your gear back in through the shallow flats. If you want to get out into the Strait, launch from Iona or the North Arm of the River in Richmond, just South of the Airport but you'll still have to deal with current and a long walk back if anything goes sideways.

Short video of the river yesterday https://vimeo.com/334484180

[Roxstock]

Another session this afternoon?

[Roxstock]

Scored a short session at kits for sunset, unfortunately the wind died before the sun went down. Great to get back to back warm NW.

[telus022420]

Are there any volunteers to compile sailing site info for Garry Point Park?

[gabrielb]

[ShonanDB]

Are there any volunteers to compile sailing site info for Garry Point Park?

Use the search box at the top right and enter Gary Point Park and it will bring up all the past posts but here are a couple quick notes. The Sand Heads sensor is pretty accurate as to the actual wind on the river so it's showing 21 gusting to 26 knots as of the 10am reading today so a 4.5m sail would be good.

"...Garry Point Park in Steveston (South Richmond). The best launch is about 100 metres West of the parking lot (see video), in a small crescent shaped bay and the river is sailable on all tides but has a strong current (4+ knots) at low tide. There is also everything from small boats to large container ships and dredges coming and going so you need to be constantly looking up as well as down wind. It's really only sailable on a W, WNW, or NW wind where the wind is blowing upriver so you are always sailing downwind."

"I usually sail in the river but you could work your way upwind to the section where the wood pilings end on the South side of the river and head out into the Strait. Getting out would be fairly easy but coming back could be the challenge if the wind drops as you would have to deal with the river current. I paddled out the small channel on the North side looking for surfable waves in the past but it was a lot of work. During an ebbing tide the river current can get up to about 8 knots. On a WNW day the wind blows straight up the river so you get rolling swell moving upriver, like a mini version of the Gorge. At low tide when the current is strong there is a lot going on and if you break something and you end up in the water for a while, you'll be pushed out towards the lighthouse and it will be a long trek back. The good part is that it is shallow on either side of the river for a long way so as long as you work your way out of the main shipping channel, you could feasibly swim/walk/carry your gear back in through the shallow flats. If you want to get out into the Strait, launch from Iona or the North Arm of the River in Richmond, just South of the Airport but you'll still have to deal with current and a long walk back if anything goes sideways."

Short video of the river May 5th, 2019 on an ebbing tide (an hour before low tide) https://vimeo.com/334484180

Low tide today is just before 2pm today so the current will be increasing until then.

Darrell

[ShonanDB]

Great find GB. This video is at high tide so you can't see the wood pilings along the other side but you can see the crescent launch area and it's proximity to the parking lot and the general layout of the park and channels.

Darrell