Sutil Channel

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Sutil Channel
French: Canal Sutil
Looking up Sutil Channel, Quadra Island.jpg
Looking up Sutil Channel from Quadra Island
Canada British Columbia relief location map.jpg
Red pog.svg
Sutil Channel
Locmap-SutilChannel.png
Location of Sutil Channel among the Discovery Islands
Location Discovery Islands, British Columbia
Coordinates 50°8′N125°4′W / 50.133°N 125.067°W / 50.133; -125.067 Coordinates: 50°8′N125°4′W / 50.133°N 125.067°W / 50.133; -125.067
Type Strait
Ocean/sea sources Salish Sea
Islands Coulter Island, Hill Island, Marina Island, Penn Islands
References [1]

Sutil Channel (French : Canal Sutil) is a broad strait located in the Discovery Islands of British Columbia, Canada.

Contents

Etymology

Sutil Channel was named around 1864 by Captain George Henry Richards in honor of the ship Sutil used by Dionisio Alcalá Galiano in exploring the region in 1792. [2] A group of small islands in Sutil Channel called the Subtle Islands are named for Galiano's ship as well, translated to English. [3]

Geography

Extent

Sutil Channel is located between Cortes Island to the east, and Quadra Island and Read Island to the west. It connects Calm Channel to the north with the Strait of Georgia to the south. Hoskyn Channel branches off toward the northwest from the Sutil Channel between Read Island and Quadra Island. Van Densp Inlet branches off from the northern end of the channel to incise Cortes Island from the northwest.

The southern boundary of Sutil Channel, where it joins the Strait of Georgia, is defined as a line between Francisco Point, at the southeast end of Quadra Island, to Sutil Point, the southern end of Cortes Island. Sometimes Cape Mudge instead of Francisco Point is mentioned as the southern end of Quadra Island. The boundary between Sutil Channel and Hoskyn Channel is a line between Rebecca Spit on Quadra Island and Read Point on Read Island. Wide in the south, Sutil Channel narrows in the north, and merges with Calm Channel at the northernmost point of Cortes Island in the vicinity of the Rendezvous Islands. Settlements on the shore of Sutil Channel include Whaletown on Cortes Island. [4] Desolation Sound, which strictly defined does not directly connect to Sutil Channel, is sometimes used loosely as all the waters north of Cape Mudge and Sarah Point, including Sutil Channel and Discovery Passage. [5]

Major features

The major bays of Sutil Channel include Burwood Bay, Carrington Bay, Coulter Bay, Evans Bay, George Harbour, and Manson Bay. The major islands of Sutil Channel include Coulter Island, Hill Island, Marina Island, and the Penn Islands.

Hydrology

The Penn Islands of Sutil Channel delineate part of the northern limit of the Salish Sea. [6]

See also

Related Research Articles

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Cortes Island

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Read Island

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<i>Sutil</i> (ship)

Sutil was a brig-rigged schooner built in 1791 by the Spanish Navy at San Blas, New Spain. It was nearly identical to Mexicana, also built at San Blas in 1791. Both vessels were built for exploring the newly discovered Strait of Georgia, carried out in 1792 under Dionisio Alcalá Galiano, on Sutil, and Cayetano Valdés y Flores, on Mexicana. During this voyage the two Spanish vessels encountered the two British vessels under George Vancouver, HMS Discovery and HMS Chatham, which were also engaged in exploring the Strait of Georgia. The two expeditions cooperated in surveying the complex channels between the Strait of Georgia and Queen Charlotte Strait, in the process proving the insularity of Vancouver Island. After this first voyage Sutil continued to serve the San Blas Naval Department, making various voyages to Alta California and the Pacific Northwest coast.

<i>Mexicana</i> (ship)

The Mexicana was a topsail schooner built in 1791 by the Spanish Navy at San Blas, New Spain. It was nearly identical to the Sutil, also built at San Blas later in 1791. Both vessels were built for exploring the newly discovered Strait of Georgia, carried out in 1792 under Dionisio Alcalá Galiano, on the Sutil, and Cayetano Valdés y Flores, on the Mexicana. During this voyage the two Spanish vessels encountered the two British vessels under George Vancouver, HMS Discovery and Chatham, which were also engaged in exploring the Strait of Georgia. The two expeditions cooperated in surveying the complex channels between the Strait of Georgia and Queen Charlotte Strait, in the process proving the insularity of Vancouver Island. After this first voyage the Mexicana continued to serve the San Blas Naval Department, making various voyages to Alta California and the Pacific Northwest coast.

The New Westminster Land District is one of 59 land districts of British Columbia, Canada, which are the underlying cadastral divisions of that province, created with rest of those on Mainland British Columbia via the Lands Act of the Colony of British Columbia in 1860. The British Columbia government's BC Names system, a subdivision of GeoBC, defines a land district as "a territorial division with legally defined boundaries for administrative purposes" All land titles and surveys use the Land District system as the primary point of reference, and entries in BC Names for placenames and geographical objects are so listed.

Lewis Channel

Lewis Channel is a strait located between Cortes Island and West Redonda Island in the Discovery Islands of British Columbia, Canada. It is part of the northern Salish Sea.

References

  1. "Homfray Channel". apps.gov.bc.ca. Retrieved 2020-09-29.
  2. "Sutil Channel". BC Geographical Names.
  3. "Subtle Islands". BC Geographical Names.
  4. Geography from Base Map Online Store Archived 2008-05-09 at the Wayback Machine , TRIM 1:20,000 Digital Base Maps, British Columbia Integrated Land Management Bureau, Base Mapping and Geomatic Services; and Hale, Robert (2007). Waggoner Cruising Guide 2007. Weatherly Press. ISBN   978-0-935727-26-5.
  5. Hale, Robert (2007). Waggoner Cruising Guide 2007. Weatherly Press. p. 208. ISBN   978-0-935727-26-5.
  6. Environmental History and Features of Puget Sound Archived 2009-05-13 at the Wayback Machine , NOAA-NWFSC