Kitsilano Point

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Kitsilano Point is located on in Vancouver on the western shore and lies near historical sites and downtown Vancouver. To the north of this beach are Kitsilano Beach and Jericho Beach on the shores of English Bay.

FIRST NATIONS HISTORY:
The name Kitsilano comes from Squamish Chief August Jack Khatsahlano (Xats'alanexw), who was a prominent Squamish Chief and notable Vancouver historian who shared Indigenous oral history with others.

False Creek is a historically and culturally important area for the Coast Salish peoples, specifically the Squamish, Musqueam, and Tsleil-Waututh Nations. For at least 8,000 years First Nations have harvested salmon, shellfish, animal meat, and plants in villages near False Creek, Stanley Park and in Burrard Inlet to the north (Vancouver Historical Society, n.d).

Photo: Kathleen MacLeod - Flickr

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COVID-19

Keep your distance from other people.

Practicing social distancing is still essential. Only go to the beach if you are able to keep 6 feet or 2 meters away from others. Follow the instructions provided by your local health authorities. If your community has asked that you remain indoors and away from others, do so. Spending a day in any crowded place is the worst thing we can do for our most vulnerable right now and will counter our efforts to curb the virus’s spread.

Water Quality

Passed water quality tests at least 95% of the time
Historical Status
This status is based on the latest sample, taken on September 27th, 2022. Fraser Riverkeeper updates the status of this beach as soon as test results become available. These results were posted to Swim Guide on September 29th, 2022 at 3:47 PM.

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Monitoring Frequency

Source Information

Vancouver Coastal Health (VCH) monitors the water quality at 31 Vancouver-area beaches. Sampling is conducted during the height of swim season (May – September) and for the annual Polar Bear Swim (December).

VCH follows the Canadian Recreational Water Guidelines. Recreational water is considered safe if the geometric mean result is under 200 E.coli/100mL based on the previous last five samples or a single sample limit of under 400 E.coli/100mL. Should the results exceed the guidelines or in the event of a known hazard or spill, the Medical Health Officer will make an assessment of the risk to human health. If there is a risk to human health, a warning sign will be posted at the beach stating “This Water is Contaminated and Unsafe for Swimming.” Results are communicated on the Vancouver Coastal Health website. Data is shared on Swim Guide according to these results, as soon as they become available. Data is typically available on Thursdays or Fridays

Recreational water quality for a beach is determined by E. coli counts from the Greater Vancouver Regional District Water Quality Laboratory.

A beach is marked Green when geometric mean results are under 200 E.coli/100 mL and single sample results are below 400 E.coli/100mL.

A beach is marked Red when the geometric mean results are equal to or above 200 E.coli/100 mL water or single sample results are above 400 E.coli/100 mL.

A beach is marked Grey when there are no current results or there is no available information

Water Quality Graph