Swimmers challenge Salish Sea
by
Georgia Strait Alliance
On July 3rd at 6:30 am, five swimmers will enter Georgia Strait, or the northern arm of the newly named Salish Sea, near Sechelt and emerge less than 12 hours later at Pipers Beach in Nanaimo. The swimmers are daring to cross this 35 km stretch of water, roughly the same distance as the English Channel crossing, in order to draw attention to increased pressure being put on the on the Strait of Georgia.
Following in the “finsteps” of marathon swimmers Fin Donnelly and Marilyn Bell, Rod Craig will swim without wetsuit, and four others will swim in relay.
“The purpose of the swim is to draw attention to the fragile nature of the Salish Sea,” says Brent Hobbs, Salish Sea swim coordinator.
“This region is home to the magnificent Pacific Salmon and many other marine creatures, and we have to become more aware of the need to protect this amazing body of water.”
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Crossing the Salish Sea is an opportunity to bring attention to one of the finest bodies of water in the world through a physical demonstration of endurance,” said Fin Donnelly, who successfully crossed this body of water four times in the 1990s. “These swimmers are doing this swim because they love and respect the ocean and its denizens”
“We greatly appreciate the attention these swimmers are bringing to the Strait of Georgia, one of Canada’s most at risk natural environments,” says Christianne Wilhelmson of the Georgia Strait Alliance. “We all need to become better stewards of the Strait and we hope this will bring attention to that goal.”
The swimmers have boats accompanying them with first aid, offering protection in the event of hypothermia. It is expected the solo swimmer will make landfall approximately 10-12 hours after entering the water on the Sechelt side. The relay team hopes to maintain speeds of 2 to 3 ½ km an hour, arriving, if the wind, currents and conditions are favourable, in under 10 hours.
Mr. Craig, who qualified last summer to swim the English Channel by swimming 25 kilometres in six hours in Howe Sound, considers this swim his rehearsal for his English Channel challenge later in July.
One of the escorts is John Dafoe, a well known environmental activist, guide and resident of the South Sunshine Coast. He escorted Donnelly on his 1992 record-setting ‘Save Georgia Strait’ swim crossing in support of Georgia Strait Alliance. Dafoe works as a tireless advocate for BC Coastal waters and hopes this swim will bring attention to the decline of Pacific wild salmon, especially the 2009 Fraser River Sockeye collapse.
Donations to support the protection of the Strait of Georgia can be made to Georgia Strait Alliance (www.georgiastrait.org) and Rivershed Society of BC (www.rivershed.com).
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June 30, 2010
