Haro Strait, often referred to as the Haro Straits because it is really a series of straits, is one of the main channels connecting the Strait of Georgia to the Strait of Juan de Fuca separating Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands in British Columbia, Canada from the San Juan Islands of Washington state in the United States, Strait of Georgia at sunset The Strait of Georgia (also known as Georgia Strait and the Gulf of Georgia) is a 240 km (150 mi)-long strait between Vancouver Island (as well as its nearby Gulf Islands) and the mainland Pacific coast of British Columbia, Canada. ... The Strait of Juan de Fuca separates Vancouver Island of British Columbia from the Olympic Peninsula of Washington state. ... Vancouver Island is separated from mainland British Columbia by the Strait of Georgia and the Queen Charlotte Strait, and from Washington by the Juan De Fuca Strait. ... Map showing the location of the Southern Gulf Islands The Gulf Islands is the name collectively given to the islands in the Strait of Georgia between Vancouver Island and the mainland Pacific coast of British Columbia, Canada. ... Motto: Splendor Sine Occasu (Latin: Splendour without diminishment) Capital Victoria Largest city Vancouver Official languages English Government - Lieutenant-Governor Iona Campagnolo - Premier Gordon Campbell (BC Liberal) Federal representation in Canadian Parliament - House seats 36 - Senate seats 6 Confederation July 20, 1871 (6th province) Area Ranked 4th - Total 944,735 km... One of the San Juan islands The San Juan Islands are a part of the San Juan Archipelago in the northwest corner of the continental United States. ... Official language(s) English Capital Olympia Largest city Seattle Area  Ranked 18th  - Total 71,342 sq mi (184,827 km²)  - Width 240 miles (385 km)  - Length 360 miles (580 km)  - % water 6. ...

Haro Strait is a critical part of the route of the international boundary between Canada and the United States from the western terminus of the 49th Parallel segment of that boundary, and was chosen by the arbitrator in the San Juan Islands dispute (Pig War) over Rosario Strait,which lies on the east side of the San Juans. The 49th parallel of north latitude forms part of the International Boundary between Canada and the United States from Manitoba to British Columbia on the Canadian side and from Minnesota to Washington on the U.S. side. ...

History

The Haro Strait and other waters flanking the Gulf Islands and San Juans (really one archipelago artificially divided by the international boundary) were the home of Straits Salish peoples including the Lummi, Saanich and Clallam , but the route's natural importance as a regional waterway made it also an important sea-route for raiding and also for regular trade for all marine peoples of the Northwest Coast. The Lummi Nation is a Native American tribe in western Washington state in the United States. ... The Saanich are a Native American/First Nations group from the north coast of the Olympic Peninsula in Washington and the southereasternmost part of Vancouver Island in British Columbia. ... This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ...

Haro Strait was named by Spanish sea-captain Manuel Quimper after his pilot, Gonzalo Lopez de Haro, during his voyage thorough it during his explorations to penetrate and map the inland waters beyond the Strait of Juan de Fuca. Quimper and his ship were the first Europeans known to have penetrated the Strait, although it is indeterminate in the log of Juan de Fuca as to whether he had voyaged into the Georgia Strait as well as the strait now bearing his name. Rosario Strait was near-simultaneously "discovered" and mapped by Captain George Vancouver. Manuel Quimper del Pino was a Spanish explorer of French paternity who participated in exploration and settlement expeditions for Spain along the Pacific Coast of North America. ... The Strait of Juan de Fuca separates Vancouver Island of British Columbia from the Olympic Peninsula of Washington state. ... Juan de Fuca (born 1536 as Ioannis Phokas in Kefalonia/Greece; † 1602 in Zákynthos/Greece, often reported as Apostolos Valerianos), was a Greek captain employed by Spain to sail northward from Mexico and look for a northern passage from the Pacific Ocean to the Atlantic Ocean. ... A statue of George Vancouver outside of Vancouver City Hall in Vancouver, British Columbia. ...

Haro Strait's status as the location of the international boundary was not established until the resolution of the San Juan Islands dispute in 1870, when it was selected by arbitration over Rosario Strait, on the eastern side of the San Juans, which was preferred by the British and would have made the San Juans part of British Columbia, as they were originally viewed to be by the British after the Oregon Treaty of 1846. Much shorter than the Rosario Strait, though more difficult to navigate, the strait is the main shipping channel to the Port of Vancouver and other ports around the Gulf of Georgia from the open sea. Navigation through American waters in this stretch by Canadian vessels is sanctioned by the Oregon Treaty, which stipulated that commercial shipping south of the 49th Parallel in these waters would be unmolested. It is also an important location for the regional commercial fishery, as the bulk of the Fraser River salmon run uses the Haro Strait to enter that river. The Pig War (also called the Pig Episode, the San Juan Boundary Dispute or the Northwestern Boundary Dispute) was a confrontation in 1859 between American and British authorities, resulting from a dispute over the boundary between the United States and Great Britain. ... Map of the lands in dispute The Treaty with Great Britain, in Regard to Limits Westward of the Rocky Mountains, also known as the Oregon Treaty or Treaty of Washington, is a bilateral treaty between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and the United States that was signed... General information Founded Original shipment 1964 Coordinates  - Latitude  - Longitude 49°1637 N 123°0715 W Area  - Coastline  - Land  - Water 247 kilometres 4. ... area between vancouver island and british columbia ... Fraser River watershed The Fraser River is the longest river in British Columbia, Canada, rising near Mount Robson in the Rocky Mountains and flowing for 1400 km (870 mi), into the Pacific Ocean at the city of Vancouver. ... The salmon run is the time at which salmon swim back up the rivers in which they were born to spawn and die. ...

D'Arcy Island on the Canadian side of the strait was a leper colony for Chinese immigrants in the 19th. Century. A leper colony is a place to quarantine people with leprosy from the rest of the population. ... A Chinese Canadian is a person of Chinese descent or origin who was born in or immigrated to Canada. ...

Fauna

The strait is a favourite locale for whale-watching tours based in Greater Victoria and also in the San Juans because of the density and variety of its marine life. Killer whales, sea lions, seals and a large range of different species of seabirds. Whale watching off the coast of Bar Harbor, Maine. ...

See also

• Rosario Strait
• Pig War
• Oregon Treaty