This is a photo of the 2013 Round Saltspring Race. As the name suggests, it is a race for sail boats around Salt Spring Island, BC. (a distance of 44 to 50 mi depending who you talk to…but in practice, irrelevant because you always sail further than either of those numbers..)
At the time, the racers were told at a skipper’s meeting—just before the race starts—which direction around the island the race will go. That year, the race was “counter-clockwise” (out Ganges Harbour and left into Trincomali Channel).
This rare image shows some of the fleet stretched across Trincomali Channel, flying spinnakers and heading downwind on the East side of Saltspring Island.
Sailing around an island sometimes means running into light winds. And that’s what happened at Southey Point parking lot. Add some opposing tides and it can get interesting.
Here, some patient spectators are looking west at Southey Point where a few boats have squeaked by Southey Point and have turned 90 degrees for the long reach towards Sansum Narrows and to the bottom of the island.