Whiskey Golf: the military test range off Nanoose Bay, for boaters

If you round the Ballenas Islands heading south in a small boat, the radio on channel 16 may pick up a call from "Winchelsea Control". It means the water ahead belongs, for the moment, to the Navy. The Whiskey Golf test range covers a broad stretch of the Strait of Georgia off Nanoose Bay, and on most weekdays it is busy with something few people on shore ever see: torpedoes and other underwater test devices running beneath the surface toward electronic targets.

This guide explains what the Whiskey Golf test range is, who uses it, when it is active, and what anyone travelling past it needs to know. The practical details come from the Royal Canadian Navy's own warning and harbour procedures, both dated May 2025.

What the Whiskey Golf test range is

Officially, the range belongs to the Canadian Forces Maritime Experimental and Test Ranges, usually shortened to CFMETR, a Department of National Defence facility on the east side of Vancouver Island, about 20 km south of Parksville and about 30 km north of Nanaimo. Its offshore test area is designated "Area WG", which the phonetic alphabet turns into Whiskey Golf. Locals and boaters sometimes say "Whiskey Gulf" instead.

According to the Navy, the range tests ship and aircraft systems and torpedoes launched by surface vessels, submarines or aircraft. A CFMETR officer, Lieutenant Commander Trent Nichols, described the work to NanaimoNewsNOW in 2016 in plainer terms: "We fire torpedos there, we launch sonobuoys there, we test all manner of acoustic warfare devices. However these are all exercise devices and nothing goes 'boom' at CFMETR."

The control point for all of this is Winchelsea Island, a small island north of Nanoose Bay that is part of the CFMETR establishment. From there, "Winchelsea Island Control" directs traffic on the range and handles clearances for vessels entering Nanoose Harbour.

Why the water off Nanoose Bay suits a test range

The Nanoose Bay test range sits where it does for reasons that have little to do with the shore.

The appeal of this stretch of water to navies is physical. Reporting in The Seattle Times in 1997 described Whiskey Golf as a rectangle of about 5 by 15 miles, wired with 30 submerged monitoring stations, each linked by cable to Winchelsea Island. A range official quoted in the same article explained what made it unusual: "The 1,200-foot depth and relatively soft, silty bottom are ideal for testing and retrieving torpedoes."

A deep, quiet basin with a soft floor means test torpedoes can run, be tracked precisely by the instruments on the seabed, and be recovered afterwards without being damaged. That combination, close to both Canadian and American naval bases, is the reason the range has stayed in use for so long.

Who uses the range

CFMETR is a Canadian facility run by the Canadian Forces. It has also long been used by the United States Navy. The Seattle Times reported in 1997 that the base was owned and managed by Canada but used primarily by U.S. Navy units attached to the Keyport base in Kitsap County, Washington, and that for more than 30 years the U.S. Navy had been bringing torpedoes to Nanoose for sea trials.

That American presence is still visible from time to time. Announcing a closure in July 2016, Nichols told NanaimoNewsNOW that "mariners will note a rather large American support vessel on the range and with it Whiskey Gulf is closed."

The 1997 standoff over the Nanoose Bay test range

The range's least obscure moment came in 1997, during a dispute between Canada and the United States over Pacific salmon. B.C. Premier Glen Clark looked for a way to pressure Washington and found one off Nanoose Bay. As The Seattle Times explained, the shore buildings stood on federal property, but the seabed under Whiskey Golf was owned by the province and leased to the Canadian military. Cancelling the lease would make the range unusable for both navies.

Clark set a deadline to shut the range down. Federal officials challenged his authority and threatened to expropriate the range if he went ahead. The newspaper noted that CFMETR had no known effect on salmon; the base was simply a bargaining chip.

The salmon dispute was only the latest objection. The Seattle Times described an "odd alliance of peace activists and British Columbia's populist premier", and noted that many Canadians were uneasy about the presence of nuclear submarines and asked why American torpedoes needed testing in Canadian waters. Those protests, the paper said, had attracted little public attention until the premier stepped in.

Officials defending the range made a military argument. Even after the Cold War, they said, dozens of countries operated submarines capable of firing torpedoes, and anti-submarine warfare remained important to both navies; they cited the Falklands War, in which a single Argentine diesel submarine had kept the British fleet occupied.

The range kept operating. Today, the Navy's harbour procedures describe a "WG Federally Expropriated Area" shown on the charts, with the active exercise area inside it.

When the range is active

The Navy's 2025 warning says testing usually takes place during daylight hours, Monday to Saturday. During testing, Area WG is declared "active". The exact hours change from day to day and are not something to guess at.

The hazard during active periods is specific. According to the Navy, no explosives are used, but there is a risk that a torpedo homes on a vessel and strikes it on its way back to the surface. A small boat drifting in the wrong place is exactly the kind of target the test equipment is designed to find.

Outside active periods the danger does not disappear entirely. Lighted and unlighted mooring buoys are placed at random within the area, and the Navy advises caution when crossing even when the range is quiet.

How to check Whiskey Golf status

The Navy lists several ways to find out whether the range is active. Use more than one if you are unsure, and check again on the day you travel.

The harbour procedures add VHF weather channel 1 as another way to reach Winchelsea Control. Channel 16 itself is the coast's distress and calling channel, kept under watch at nearly every shore site of the Coast Guard's Marine Communications and Traffic Services centres. The Navy's notice is blunt about the main rule: do not enter the active area unless Winchelsea Control has specifically authorised it.

The safe transit route past Whiskey Golf

For vessels travelling along the coast, the Navy recommends a transit area 1,000 yards north of Winchelsea Island and 1,000 yards east of South Ballenas Island. The corridor lets boats get around the active area safely and keeps access open to the marinas in Schooner Cove and Nanoose Bay.

The active area itself is drawn with pecked lines on Canadian Hydrographic Service charts 3512, 3456 and 3459. If you are planning a crossing toward Lasqueti Island or the mainland from the Nanoose side, those are the charts to have on board.

Rules inside the range

Area WG is a "Defence Establishment" under the National Defence Act, and the Defence Controlled Access Area Regulations apply to it. In practice this means a few firm rules:

Any vessel within the area must clear it or stop on demand from Winchelsea Island Control, any range vessel or the range helicopter. Instructions may be given verbally, electronically or in writing, and they carry the same weight whichever way they arrive. Vessels that ignore directions may be charged with trespassing or face a monetary penalty, according to the Navy.

While the range is active, there is no anchoring, fishing, crabbing or marine trapping in the active area. Separately, there is a no-anchoring and no-fishing zone north-northeast of Winchelsea Island. It lies outside the exercise boundary but inside the federal area, and it exists to protect mariners from the high-power submarine cables that run from the island.

Range vessels and moorings

Range vessels are easy to miss in poor light unless you know what to look for. According to the Navy, they show a flashing red light in addition to the normal navigation lights and shapes. They may be working outside scheduled range hours.

The Navy advises staying at least 3,000 yards away from them, because a range vessel may be held in a three-point moor, with mooring lines running out to buoys as far as 1,500 yards away. A line at that distance is invisible from a small boat until it is too late to avoid it.

Planning a trip past Whiskey Golf

The rules are easiest to follow in the order you meet them. The day before, call Winchelsea Island Control on 250-468-5080 or 1-888-221-1011; that line gives the next day's range activity. Anyone planning further ahead, a club cruise for example, can ask the CFMETR Range Officer on 250-468-5002. On the morning itself, and again on approach, listen to VHF 21B or Weather 3, which carry the active times, or search "WG" on the Coast Guard's navigational warnings site.

As you near the Ballenas Islands or Nanoose Bay, call Winchelsea Island Control on VHF channel 10 or 16 for safe-transit information. If the range is active, use the corridor 1,000 yards north of Winchelsea Island and 1,000 yards east of South Ballenas Island, and do not enter the active area unless Winchelsea Control specifically authorises it. If a range vessel, the range helicopter or Winchelsea Control tells you to clear or stop, do so.

Along the way, watch for flashing red lights on range vessels and keep 3,000 yards from them, whatever the schedule says. If the range is quiet and you cross it, keep a lookout for mooring buoys and lines, lighted or not. And if you had planned to fish, crab or drop traps, remember that none of those is allowed in the active area while the range is active, and never in the cable zone north-northeast of Winchelsea Island.

Nanoose Harbour and Winchelsea Control

Nanoose Harbour, the inlet behind the range, is a naval harbour with its own rules. Ships must contact Winchelsea Island Control before entering, moving within or leaving it, and all ships are expected to monitor VHF 21B or Weather 3. Pleasure craft must be licensed or registered and must report their arrival, how long they intend to stay and when they leave.

The harbour procedures also note that any vessel may be hailed by the King's Harbour Master or approached by a Military Police or force-protection boat, and that access to the harbour may be restricted for security reasons. For most visitors this never comes up. For anyone anchoring overnight on the way to Schooner Cove, it is worth knowing in advance.

A base that keeps being rebuilt

The shore side of CFMETR does not stand still. Federal impact-assessment records list a series of projects at the establishment: construction and later upgrades of a boat ramp at Ranch Point, repairs to the Ranch Point jetty and floats, a jetty redesign, security cameras on Winchelsea Island, and a permanent underwater training aid near the Ranch Point float.

That last project is a small window into how the facility is used beyond torpedo testing. According to the Impact Assessment Agency of Canada, the Department of National Defence proposed placing an uncoated aluminium boat shell, about 16 feet long, at a depth of roughly 40 feet beside the Ranch Point float, so that RCMP divers could practise underwater recovery by lifting it to the surface with lift bags and returning it to the bottom.

Visiting Nanoose Harbour by boat

Nanoose Harbour is open to the public for temporary recreational use, but it is a naval harbour and runs on its own rules. Before entering, a ship must give Winchelsea Island Control its name, port of registry if it has one, arrival and departure times, length, breadth and draft, whether it carries dangerous goods, and its destination in the harbour. Vessels carrying Class 1 explosives need specific authorisation.

Inside the harbour the speed limit is 5 knots or less, with minimum wake when passing ships that are anchored, alongside or working. Vessels must keep 200 metres from stationary Defence vessels, jetties, Navy buoys and vessels underway, and pleasure craft are prohibited within 200 metres of any Canadian Forces or Defence asset, including jetties, floats, docks, pilings and buoys.

Anchoring is allowed only with authorisation. Pleasure craft may anchor only in the southern part of the harbour, west of Datum Rock and south of the Navy buoy, moored with two anchors as a harbour official directs. Two mooring buoys there are available first come, first served: NA-01 for vessels up to 30 metres and NA-02 for larger ones. A boat may stay a maximum of 21 nights in any 40-day period; long-term anchoring is prohibited, and the procedures suggest moving to a marina once the allowance runs out. The anchorage request form is on the Navy's Nanoose Harbour web page and must be returned within an hour of arrival.

Some things are not allowed in Nanoose Harbour at all: discharging black water, rafting pleasure craft together at anchor, and living aboard, whether in a boat, a houseboat, a raft or any other floating structure used for sleeping. When the owner of a vessel cannot be found or refuses an order to move it, the procedures give the Harbour Authority power to take possession of the vessel, move it by whatever means are reasonably necessary, moor it somewhere else, or remove and dispose of it, at the owner's risk and expense.

Reading the chart: the corners of Area WG

The Navy's 2025 warning prints the active area as a five-sided shape with corners lettered A to E. In order, they are at 49° 21.35′ N 124° 07.70′ W; 49° 21.00′ N 123° 48.40′ W; 49° 14.38′ N 123° 48.40′ W; 49° 16.75′ N 124° 00.90′ W; and 49° 19.35′ N 124° 07.70′ W. On the warning's diagram, the Ballenas Islands, Winchelsea Islands and Lasqueti Island sit around the edges of the shape, with Nanoose Harbour, Nanaimo and Gabriola Island to the south.

Plotted on a chart, the corners make one thing clear that is easy to miss from shore: the Whiskey Golf test range is not a small box beside Winchelsea Island but a large share of the strait between Nanoose Bay and Lasqueti. The 1997 reporting also mentioned a second, slightly larger test area next to Whiskey Golf; the current warning describes only Area WG, so check the Notices to Mariners Annual Edition, which the warning refers to, for anything beyond it.

Living next to the range

From the beaches and trails around Nanoose Bay, Whiskey Golf mostly looks like empty water. The work happens below the surface, and the only signs on a busy day are a range vessel holding station, a helicopter, or an unusual ship anchored offshore. The 1997 reporting described the shore buildings as "nondescript", and that remains a fair description of how the base sits in the landscape.

What the Nanoose Bay test range does is less nondescript. The instruments on the seabed, the cables to Winchelsea Island and the soft basin in between have made this small part of the strait something the range official quoted in 1997 called "unique for North America". For people on the water, the practical result is a simple habit: before heading past Nanoose, check the status, and if the answer is "active", take the long way round.

Whether the range will look the same in another 30 years depends on decisions made far from Nanoose Bay. The buoys in the water this week are a reminder that, for now, it is still very much in use.

Questions

What is Whiskey Golf?

Whiskey Golf, or Area WG, is a stretch of the Strait of Georgia off Nanoose Bay used by the Canadian Forces Maritime Experimental and Test Ranges (CFMETR) to test ship and aircraft systems and torpedoes. The name comes from the phonetic alphabet for the letters W and G.

Where exactly is the Whiskey Golf test range?

It lies in the Strait of Georgia between Nanoose Bay and the Ballenas and Winchelsea islands, east of Vancouver Island. The active area is marked with pecked lines on Canadian Hydrographic Service charts 3512, 3456 and 3459.

Is Whiskey Golf dangerous?

When the range is active, yes. The Royal Canadian Navy's 2025 warning notes that no explosives are used, but a torpedo can home on a vessel and strike it on the way to the surface. Mooring buoys and lines also lie within the area at any time.

When is the range active?

Testing usually takes place in daylight hours, Monday to Saturday, according to the Royal Canadian Navy. The exact times vary and should be checked before every trip.

How do I check whether Whiskey Golf is active?

Listen to VHF 21B or Weather 3, call Winchelsea Island Control on VHF channel 10 or 16, phone 250-468-5080 or 1-888-221-1011 for the next day's activity, or search 'WG' on the Canadian Coast Guard navigational warnings (NAVWARN) site.

Can I sail through Whiskey Golf?

Not while it is active, unless Winchelsea Control specifically authorises it. When the range is not active you may transit, but the Navy advises caution because mooring buoys and lines are placed at random within the area.

What is the recommended route around the range?

The Navy recommends a transit area 1,000 yards north of Winchelsea Island and 1,000 yards east of South Ballenas Island, which also keeps access open to the marinas in Schooner Cove and Nanoose Bay.

What happens if a boat enters the active area?

Any vessel in the area must clear or stop when told to by Winchelsea Island Control, a range vessel or the range helicopter. Area WG is a Defence Establishment under the National Defence Act, and vessels that do not comply may face a monetary penalty or a trespass charge.

Can I fish or set crab traps in Whiskey Golf?

No anchoring, fishing, crabbing or marine trapping is allowed in the active area while the range is active. A separate no-anchoring and no-fishing zone north-northeast of Winchelsea Island protects high-power submarine cables.

How do I recognise a range vessel?

Range vessels show a flashing red light in addition to the normal lights and shapes. The Navy advises staying at least 3,000 yards away, because a vessel may be moored with lines running to buoys 1,500 yards away.

Who uses the Whiskey Golf range?

The range is run by the Canadian Forces. Reporting in 1997 described it as used mainly by United States Navy units from Keyport in Washington State, and a CFMETR officer in 2016 mentioned an American support vessel on the range during a test.

Are live explosives used at Nanoose Bay?

No. The Navy's warning states that no explosives are used, and a CFMETR officer told NanaimoNewsNOW in 2016 that 'nothing goes boom at CFMETR'. The hazard comes from the test devices themselves.

Why was Whiskey Golf in the news in 1997?

B.C. Premier Glen Clark threatened to cancel the provincial lease of the seabed under the range to pressure the United States in a salmon dispute. Federal officials disputed his authority and said they could expropriate the range.

Where is Winchelsea Island Control?

On Winchelsea Island, north of Nanoose Bay, which is part of CFMETR. The control office directs marine traffic on the range and handles clearance for vessels entering Nanoose Harbour.

Do I need permission to enter Nanoose Harbour?

Ships must contact Winchelsea Island Control before entering, moving within or leaving Nanoose Harbour, and pleasure craft must register their arrival, intended stay and departure, according to the harbour's 2025 practices and procedures.

Which charts show the range?

Canadian Hydrographic Service charts 3512, 3456 and 3459 show the active area with pecked lines, as well as the no-anchoring zone near Winchelsea Island.

Sources

1. WG Active Area (hazardous) — Canadian Forces Maritime Experimental and Test Ranges, Nanoose Bay, Royal Canadian Navy, Department of National Defence, 2025-05
2. Nanoose Harbour practices and procedures, Royal Canadian Navy, Department of National Defence, 2025-05
3. Installation of Diving Aid – Canadian Forces Maritime Experimental and Test Ranges (CFMETR), Nanoose Bay, Impact Assessment Agency of Canada
4. Marine testing by CFMETR in Whiskey Gulf off Nanoose, NanaimoNewsNOW, 2016-07-14
5. Construction of a New Boat Ramp at Ranch Point, CFMETR (project listing), Impact Assessment Agency of Canada
6. Torpedoes in a salmon war: B.C. premier may sink high-tech U.S. Navy base, The Seattle Times, 1997-08-20