Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada is home to several bodies of water within and around its boundaries.
Of over 30 historically salmon-bearing streams diverted into underground culverts due to urbanization, several have been restored to a state visible and habitable again by plants and wildlife. [1]
Spanish Bank Creek flows north through Pacific Spirit Regional Park near U.B.C. It terminates at the beach under the Spanish Bank cliffs on Northwest Marine Drive. Urban development rendered the creek impassable to adult fish for many decades but the creek has been restored and, since 2001, sockeye salmon have been returning there to spawn.
Musqueam Creek, and its tributary Cutthroat Creek, begin in Pacific Spirit Regional Park and flow south through the Musqueam Reserve in the Southlands neighbourhood of Vancouver, where they meet before entering the Fraser River estuary. The creeks are protected by the federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans. Musqueam Creek is in the process of restoration by the Musqueam Band, and Coho salmon and Chum salmon have returned to this creek in small amounts.
Still Creek is a 17 km long creek that begins in Vancouver, crosses into Burnaby, and terminates in Burnaby Lake. In Vancouver, the Still Creek watershed is bounded by 1st Avenue, 49th Avenue, Nanaimo Street, and Boundary Road. Portions of the creek are visible and the City of Vancouver is working to uncover (or "daylight") more of the creek; however, most of the Vancouver section still lies underground, directed by culverts and storm sewers.
Beaver Creek begins at Beaver Lake and terminates in the ocean, under a bridge at the intersection of Pipeline Road and Stanley Park Drive.
Beaver Lake is a lake in the interior of Stanley Park, surrounded by walking trails and home to many aquatic birds. This lake is being reclaimed by the forest because of the water lilies that have been added. The lily pads reduce the amount of oxygen in the water, which has slowed the lake's ability to decompose organic material. Due to this, the lake is slowly becoming a swamp.
Lost Lagoon is an artificial, captive 17-hectare body of water, west of Georgia Street, near the entrance to Stanley Park. It was created in 1916 by the construction of the Stanley Park causeway. It is a nesting ground for many species of birds, including swans, Canada geese, and great blue heron. East of Lost Lagoon, across Georgia Street, is Coal Harbour, an extension of Burrard Inlet. The lagoon is now landlocked but used to be connected to the inlet, resulting in significant tidal changes along its shores, and at its western end at high tide waves would lap across what is now the Ceperley Park area at Second Beach, which was then just a sandbar. While rare in recent decades, Lost Lagoon can freeze during a cold spell, permitting public ice skating and ice hockey. The lagoon was named by poet Pauline Johnson who liked to go canoeing on the tidal lagoon and one day discovered that it was no longer there due to a low tide.
A large fountain called Jubilee Fountain graces the northeast end of the lagoon, spraying water in the air which can be seen for many blocks. The next controversy surrounding the lake followed the proposal for a fountain to be erected in the lake to coincide with the city's Golden Jubilee anniversary celebrations in 1936. For the mayor, it would be "a miracle of engineering," with the spray of water lit by virtually "limitless combinations" of colour.[9] The public, in contrast, were not impressed by the proposal. Its $33,019.96 price tag was considered extremely frivolous in the midst of an economic crisis. As written in The Sunday Sun Edition of the Vancouver Sun Newspaper, Saturday, August 8. 1936. The lead story in the Magazine section is; SECRETS OF THE FOUNTAIN. It was the conception and idea of then, Chief Electrical Engineer, Robert Harold Williams with Hume and Rumble Ltd. electrical contractors. R.Harold Williams designed and supervised the erection of the Vancouver's Golden Jubilee fountain. After a business trip to Los Angeles he saw a fountain and thought this would be a great gift for the city for their up-and-coming birthday, Golden Jubilee celebration. To build the fountain, Lost Lagoon was drained. Seventy piles were driven into the mud. On these a concrete mat was laid. The fountain was built upon this mat. The work was of necessity rushed; it was done in a month. "The fountain is worthy of all the traditions of art, worthy of Vancouver's Golden Jubilee, and it will be a permanent, decorative joy in Stanley Park". "When operating , it is like a symphony concert, in motion and color instead of music, says Harold Williams, engineer, of Hume & Rumble Ltd., under whose personal supervision the work has been done." Vancouver's Jubilee Committee and private citizens who contributed are to be commended on their work in pushing for this beautiful fountain, which is sure to be one of the major attractions during the Golden Jubilee celebration. "We've had to hurry," says Mr. Williams," in that time 285 tons of cement have been utilized and all the special equipment was built." All equipment was built in Canada and the pumps were constructed in Vancouver. All union labor was employed.[10] It was restored for Expo in 1986.[
Trout Lake is a popular swimming location and nesting ground to many species of bird. In the late 1800s, Trout Lake was a peat bog that supplied water to Hastings Mill. Trout lake was formerly stocked with rainbow trout and cutthroat trout. [2] Adjacent to the lake is a community centre, playground, ice rink, and a summer farmers' market. It is located at East 15th Avenue and Victoria Drive in East Vancouver's John Hendry Park.
The Hastings Mill, on the south side of the Inlet and running more than 20 hours a day, needed a lot of water, so built a flume, which occasionally collapsed, to carry it from Trout Lake. (Residents along that flume line frequently tapped it, with the mill's permission, for their own needs.) The mill had to post a man full-time at the lake to stop the beavers there from building dams that blocked the flow. Another of his chores was to remove the lake's trout from the flume, which at times was almost choked with fish. [3]
False Creek is an inlet to the east of English Bay between Downtown and Fairview slopes.
Burnaby is a city in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia, Canada. Located in the centre of the Burrard Peninsula, it neighbours the City of Vancouver to the west, the District of North Vancouver across the confluence of the Burrard Inlet with its Indian Arm to the north, Port Moody and Coquitlam to the east, New Westminster and Surrey across the Fraser River to the southeast, and Richmond on the Lulu Island to the southwest.
Stanley Park is a 405-hectare (1,001-acre) public park in British Columbia, Canada that makes up the northwestern half of Vancouver's Downtown Peninsula, surrounded by waters of Burrard Inlet and English Bay. The park borders the neighbourhoods of West End and Coal Harbour to its southeast, and is connected to the North Shore via the Lions Gate Bridge. The historic lighthouse on Brockton Point marks the park's easternmost point. While it is not the largest of its kind, Stanley Park is about one-fifth larger than New York City's 340-hectare (840-acre) Central Park and almost half the size of London's 960-hectare (2,360-acre) Richmond Park.
Burrard Inlet is a relatively shallow-sided fjord in northwestern Lower Mainland, British Columbia, Canada. Formed during the last Ice Age, it separates the City of Vancouver and the rest of the lowland Burrard Peninsula to the south from the coastal slopes of the North Shore Mountains, which span West Vancouver and the City and District of North Vancouver to the north.
The Burrard Peninsula is a peninsula in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia, Canada, bounded by the Burrard Inlet to the north, the Georgia Strait to the west, the North Arm of Fraser River to the south, and the Pitt River and Douglas Island to the east. The City of Vancouver occupies almost all of the western half of the peninsula, and the Cities of Burnaby and New Westminster occupy more than half of the eastern half. At its northeastern end, the peninsula is connected to the Eagle Mountain and Mount Burke of the Coast Mountains via a small isthmus at the center of the Tri-Cities.
The following is an alphabetical list of articles related to the Canadian province of British Columbia.
False Creek is a short narrow inlet in the heart of Vancouver, separating the Downtown and West End neighbourhoods from the rest of the city. It is one of the four main bodies of water bordering Vancouver, along with English Bay, Burrard Inlet, and the Fraser River. Granville Island is located within the inlet.
The Capilano River flows from north to south through the Coast Mountains on Vancouver's North Shore between West Vancouver and North Vancouver and empties into Burrard Inlet, opposite Stanley Park. The river is one of three primary sources of drinking water for residents of Greater Vancouver, and flows through the Capilano watershed. The Cleveland Dam, built in 1954, impounds a reservoir for this purpose. The entire area of the reservoir and watershed area upstream of the dam is closed to the public to ensure the quality of the drinking water. Prior to construction of the Cleveland Dam, the Capilano River deposited large amounts of sediment into Burrard Inlet. A dredge was needed to remove this sediment build-up in order to keep Burrard Inlet open for ship traffic.
Lost Lagoon is an artificial, captive 16.6-hectare body of water, west of Georgia Street, near the entrance to Stanley Park in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Surrounding the lake is a 1.75 km (1.09 mi) trail. The lake features a lit fountain that was erected by Robert Harold Williams to commemorate the city's golden jubilee. It is a nesting ground to many species of birds, including non-native mute swan, Canada geese, numerous species of ducks, such as mallard ducks, and great blue herons. Also many turtles are usually resident on the northern shore.
The Musqueam Indian Band is a First Nations band government in the Canadian province of British Columbia. It is the only First Nations band whose reserve community lies within the boundaries of the City of Vancouver.
The Homathko River is one of the major rivers of the southern Coast Mountains of the Canadian province of British Columbia. It is one of the few rivers that penetrates the range from the interior Chilcotin Country to the coastal inlets of the Pacific Ocean. The Homathko River reaches the sea at the head of Bute Inlet, just west of the mouth of the Southgate River.
The history of Vancouver, British Columbia, is one that extends back thousands of years, with its first inhabitants arriving in the area following the Last Glacial Period. With its location on the western coast of Canada near the mouth of the Fraser River and on the waterways of the Strait of Georgia, Howe Sound, Burrard Inlet, and their tributaries, Vancouver has – for thousands of years – been a place of meeting, trade, and settlement.
Indian Arm is a steep-sided glacial fjord adjacent to the city of Vancouver in southwestern British Columbia. Formed during the last Ice Age, it extends due north from Burrard Inlet, between the communities of Belcarra and the District of North Vancouver, then on into mountainous wilderness. Burrard Inlet and the opening of Indian Arm was mapped by Captain George Vancouver and fully explored days later by Dionisio Alcalá Galiano in June 1792.
Burnaby Lake is a lake located in Burnaby, British Columbia and is the focal geographic feature and namesake of Burnaby Lake Regional Park. The lake occupies 3.11 square kilometres of land, and is home to a large variety of wildlife. At least 70 species of birds make the lake and surrounding areas their home, and about 214 species of birds visit the lake throughout the year. The park has been managed by the Metro Vancouver Parks Department since 1977.
Still Creek is a long stream flowing across Central Burnaby, British Columbia and into Burnaby Lake. Still Creek's path lies mainly through the industrial area which contributes to its high level of pollution, although through dedicated work of local volunteers the creek is slowly recovering.
The Brunette River runs through East Burnaby, New Westminster and Coquitlam, flowing out of Burnaby Lake and to the Fraser River. It is the final outflow of the Central Valley Watershed, which consists of most streams between the Ulksen and Burnaby Heights. According to a map and materials by Heritage Advisory Committee and Environment and Waste Management Committee of the City of Burnaby (1993), the number of native campsites discovered on the shores of the Fraser River, Burrard Inlet and Deer Lake and some petroglyphs suggest that the area was used extensively by local aboriginal peoples such as the Squamish, Musqueam and Kwantlen for hunting and fishing before the arrival of European settlers.
Pescadero Creek is a major stream in Santa Cruz and San Mateo counties in California, United States. At 26.6 miles (42.8 km), it is the longest stream in San Mateo County and flows all year from springs in the Santa Cruz Mountains. Its source is at 1,880 feet (570 m) above sea level on the western edge of Castle Rock State Park, with additional headwaters in Portola Redwoods State Park, and its course traverses Pescadero Creek County Park and San Mateo County Memorial Park before entering Pescadero Marsh Natural Preserve at Pescadero State Beach and thence to the Pacific Ocean 14.4 miles (23 km) south of Half Moon Bay.
Taylor Creek is a 2.2-mile-long (3.5 km) northward-flowing stream originating in the Fallen Leaf Lake and culminating at Baldwin Beach at Lake Tahoe, about 1 mile (1.6 km) west of Camp Richardson in El Dorado County, California.
Marine Drive is the name for three major roadways in Greater Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The roads are known for running parallel to major bodies of water, with some sections being a major arterial road, while other serve local traffic. Marine Way is the name applied to a section of Marine Drive that was bypassed in the early 1980s.