Paddleboarding, kayaking, and similar hobbies have really taken off around Vancouver in recent years. With water on three sides of the downtown core, beaches up and down the Burrard Inlet, and urban bays like False Creek and Deep Cove all over the place, exploring our city from the ocean might be the best way to do it.

Recognizing that, the Vancouver park board last night (June 10) passed “On Water, Vancouver’s Non-motorized Watercraft Recreation Strategy,” a guide and 10-year plan to design and implement new programs and facilities for every sort of non-motorized water-sport vehicle.

Whether your forte is canoeing, kite surfing, rowing, dragon boating, outrigging, windsurfing, kayaking, paddleboarding, or small-craft sailing, the park board says it wants you to feel at home on the waters around Vancouver.

“Our waterfront is a treasured asset and a key part of our identity —from the seawall to our beautiful beaches,” park board chair Stuart Mackinnon said quoted in a media release. “The ‘On Water Strategy’, I hope, will encourage more people to explore non-motorized water sports and increase access to the water from the shoreline.”

The plan includes False Creek, Spanish Banks, English Bay, and a section of the Burrard Inlet near Coal Harbour. The Fraser River was excluded from the review on account of its heavy industrial use and lack of existing recreational facilities.

“Quick start projects include identifying and providing watercraft launch areas at beaches and parks, delivering more learn-to-paddle programs, and replacing the Alder Bay Dock next to the False Creek Community Centre with a dock that is universally accessible,” reads a park board media release.