Seymour Narrows
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| Seymour Narrows | |
|---|---|
 Approaching Seymour Narrows from the north | |
  Seymour Narrows | |
 Location of Seymour Narrows in the Discovery Islands | |
| Location | British Columbia, Canada |
| Coordinates | 50°08.2′N 125°21.2′W / 50.1367°N 125.3533°W |
| Type | Strait |
| Part of | Discovery Passage |
| Max. width | 750 metres (820 yd) |
| Average depth | 100 m (330 ft) |
Seymour Narrows is a 5-kilometre (3.1 mi) section of the Discovery Passage in British Columbia known for strong tidal currents.[1] Discovery Passage lies between Vancouver Island at Menzies Bay, British Columbia and Quadra Island except at its northern end where the eastern shoreline is Sonora Island. The section known as Seymour Narrows begins about 18 km (11 mi) from the south end of Discovery Passage where it enters the Georgia Strait near Campbell River. For most of the length of the narrows, the channel is about 750 metres (820 yd) wide. Through this narrow channel, currents can reach 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph).
The narrows were named for Rear Admiral Sir George Francis Seymour who commanded the Pacific Station from 1844 to 1848.[2]: 240 Seymour Narrows was described by Captain George Vancouver as "one of the vilest stretches of water in the world." Even after Ripple Rock was removed,[3] it remains a challenging route. In March 1981, the freighter Star Philippine ran aground in the narrows.
Hydrology
Seymour Narrows is notable also because the flowing current can be sufficiently turbulent to realize a Reynolds number of about , i.e. one hundred million, which is possibly the largest Reynolds number regularly attained in natural water channels on Earth (the current speed is about 8 m/s, 26 ft/s, the nominal depth about 100 m, 330 ft).[4] Turbulence develops usually around a Reynolds number of 2000, depending on the geometric structure of the channel.
Seymour Narrows delineates part of the northern extent of the Salish Sea.[5]
