WHO WE ARE
It is important to acknowledge that Companionway Sailing Club at the Jericho Sailing Centre is on the unceded ancestral First Nations territories of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skxwú7mesh (Squamish) & səlil̓wətaʔɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Coast Salish peoples.
Companionway is a small, family-friendly, casual sailing and paddling club (operating a bit like a co-op). We offer a variety of sailing dinghies, stand-up paddleboards, kayaks, and a sailboard.
Throughout the year, we have a variety of social gatherings both organized and spontaneous. There is a gas BBQ stored in the compound that is available to all members.
We have some rigging clinics during the season to help introduce new members to our club and familiarize them with the location of boats and equipment.
The club’s constitution requires that the executive be elected by the membership at the Annual General Meeting in November, when the budget and annual fees are set. The club is limited to 35 family memberships in order to preserve its informality – a family being defined as any two adults, with their dependent children, resident in the same household.
The club continues to develop opportunities for members to enjoy many facets of sailing. Members are encouraged to participate in events at Jericho, including the annual regatta, the weekly race series, and Opening Day activities.
CLUB HISTORY
Way back before the JSCA and Companionway, the Jericho Park area was home to the Coast Salish First Nations who lived in the lands east of Jericho Beach.
In 1867, the military set up a small naval reserve in the area to counter the American threat of a possible invasion.
In 1908, the province leased the land to the Jericho Golf and Country Club. The Prince of Wales (later King Edward VIII) played at the golf course.
In 1920, the Canadian Air Board, controlling both civil and military aviation, established an air base at Jericho Beach. It became a principal air force base on the Pacific Coast.
Federal and provincial government departments used the aircraft based here for civil roles such as anti-smuggling, fishery and forestry patrols, and transportation to remote communities.
In 1925, the entire area of Jericho was turned over for use by the RCAF. During WWII, the airbase was renamed RCAF Station Jericho Beach and housed flying boats. In 1942, the army’s Pacific Command Headquarters moved to Jericho Beach; three years later, the army took over the entire base and remained there until the late 1960s.
During 1970, the area became renowned for squatters (the then Mayor Campbell described them as “hippies, drug pushers and draft dodgers”). The Battle of Jericho (as described by the Vancouver Sun) evicted the remaining squatters from what is now the youth hostel.
In 1974, the Jericho Sailing Centre began operation.
In 1978, the City of Vancouver began the removal of all but one of the former RCAF hangars. The remaining hangar is the current site of the Jericho Sailing Centre and Companionway Sailing Club.
Companionway began in 1978 when a group of sailors at Jericho got together to buy two secondhand Lasers.
As more sailors wanted to take advantage of this opportunity for co-operative ownership and collaborative sailing, the club was incorporated as a non-profit society, registered under the BC Societies Act, with the aim of promoting family sailing at Jericho.
