This beach has recently been remodeled (Vancouver Parks info) and if I'd had more time and the weather had been more pleasant, I would have checked more of it out. As it was, this was just a short visit on the way out of town after our Vancouver weekend.
Previous post: Jericho Beach, August 2008
Jericho Beach is one of several enhanced beaches (enhanced largely by the addition of shore-perpendicular structures that help capture the westerly waves) along the south shore of English Bay, that include Kitsilano, Jericho, Locarno, and Spanish Banks Beaches. Sand is supplied from the broad shoals of Spanish Banks to the west, although the original source of this material may be retreat of the bluffs at Point Gray and the Fraser River. Maybe some was barged in, too?
AERIAL VIEW
Jericho Beach was originally the site of a flying boat station and later became a seaplane base for the RCAF. I guess that explains those strange ramps that are used by all the small boat sailing groups who use the park now.
I've visited this beach many times, but my only previous post shows the beach under somewhat more crowded conditions (August 2008). Today, there were no crowds, and no fireworks, but the sun came out in the midst of an otherwise drizzly weekend and made sitting in the bar at the Sylvia Hotel particularly nice.
AERIAL VIEW
All of Vancouver's beaches are turned to the west, since that's where all of Vancouver's wave energy comes from. This is true of the beaches on both the north and south shores of English Bay, as well as those in West Vancouver. All of these beaches benefit from promontories, groins, or other structures at their eastern ends that facilitate their more beach-friendly orientation. I suspect most of them also benefit from the periodic addition of sand brought in from elsewhere. It's not that there wouldn't have been beaches here naturally, but they wouldn't have looked like these.
Beaches often come in series, so I guess it should come as no surprise that there is more than one "Third Beach." This is the second Third Beach that I've posted about this year, the other being in La Push (February 2014), but I've also posted about this one before (April 2007).
This one is on the western side of Stanley Park, facing out towards the Strait of Georgia. It must get a lot of wave action during storms, but its orientation and the bedrock ledges help keep the sand in place.
We're coming off some pretty high tides and it looks like under the right conditions, this whole beach is under water (I suppose that could be said of most beaches - it's sort of their nature). There were wrack lines pushed back across the berm and right up against the seawall.
AERIAL VIEW
