Spring Water Colors

Bedwell Harbour, Pender Island, BC
Just south of Vancouver, the Fraser River spills into the Georgia Strait. In the spring, its water is especially muddy, and is a remarkable yellow-brown color that I liken to the paint pigment raw umber. It makes a sharp contrast to the intense blue water color to which we are accustomed, and to the blue sky and mountains. The boundary between this outflow water and the normal water is very distinct - it is like a line is drawn over the surface, brown on one side and blue on the other. The muddy water and the clear water don't mix immediately; often the boundary line is intensified by shifting currents as the tide changes.
We've left Vancouver behind, and had two fine days of sailing in the Georgia Strait and the Gulf Islands.