Editing Toronto Islands (section)

==Geography==
[[File:Gfp-canada-ontario-toronto-islands.jpg|thumb|Ward's Island, the easternmost island, with the [[Leslie Street Spit]] in the background. The channel to the east (left) of Ward's Island is the Eastern Channel, one of two access points to Toronto's [[Toronto Harbour|Inner Harbour]].]]

The area of the Islands is about {{Convert|820|acres|ha}}.{{sfn|Toronto Harbour Commission Public Affairs Department|1985|p=112}} The largest, outermost island, called Centre Island,<ref>[https://www.openstreetmap.org/#map=15/43.6225/-79.3866 Centre Island]</ref> is crescent-shaped and forms the shoreline of both the Eastern and Western Channels. Algonquin Island<ref>[https://www.openstreetmap.org/#map=17/43.62839/-79.35948 Algonquin Island]</ref> (formerly known as Sunfish Island) and Olympic Island<ref>[https://www.openstreetmap.org/#map=18/43.62260/-79.37454 Olympic Island]</ref> are two of the other major islands. The former is mostly a residential area and the latter is public parkland. What is commonly called Ward's Island<ref>[https://www.openstreetmap.org/#map=16/43.6294/-79.3567 Ward's Island]</ref> is actually the eastern end of Centre Island, and like Algonquin is mostly a residential area. The Centre Island dock and Centreville Amusement Park are located on Middle Island,<ref>[https://www.openstreetmap.org/#map=16/43.6223/-79.3773 Middle Island]</ref> which as a consequence, is often mistaken for Centre Island. Centre Island is sometimes referred to as Toronto Island (note the singular form) to prevent this type of confusion.<ref name=cityeg>{{cite web |url=http://www.toronto.ca/parks/brochures/explorers_guide.pdf | title = Nature on the Toronto Islands: An Explorer's Guide | first = Joanna | last = Kidd | publisher = City of Toronto |access-date=March 26, 2008|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080411084823/http://www.toronto.ca/parks/brochures/explorers_guide.pdf <!-- Bot retrieved archive --> |archive-date = April 11, 2008}}</ref> Other smaller islands include:
* Mugg's Island<ref>[https://www.openstreetmap.org/#map=16/43.6238/-79.3830 Mugg's Island]</ref> – home to the [[Island Yacht Club]]
* Forestry Island<ref>[https://www.openstreetmap.org/#map=17/43.61802/-79.37818 Forestry Island]</ref> – heavily forested and no fixed link to other islands
* Snake Island<ref>[https://www.openstreetmap.org/#map=18/43.62384/-79.36403 Snake Island]</ref> – heavily forested and beach facing Toronto Harbour (Snake Island Park); access from the pedestrian bridge on the south side to Centre Island
* North Chippewa Island<ref>[https://www.openstreetmap.org/#map=18/43.62329/-79.36704 North Chippewa Island]</ref> – partially forested and used by the [[Royal Canadian Yacht Club]] to store ships and with a mini clubhouse
* South Chippewa Island<ref>[https://www.openstreetmap.org/#map=18/43.62246/-79.36567 South Chippewa Island]</ref> – heavily forested and located between Snake Island and South Island
* South Island<ref>[https://www.openstreetmap.org/#map=18/43.62232/-79.36892 South Island]</ref> – used for mooring and on-land storage of boats by the [[Royal Canadian Yacht Club]]; east end of the island cut off at Chippewa Avenue and covered by trees; a tennis court is located on west end of the island
* RCYC Island<ref>[https://www.openstreetmap.org/#map=18/43.62371/-79.36928 RCYC Island]</ref> – occupied by Royal Canadian Yacht Club with clubhouse, moorings and other club facilities; private pier for RCYC launches ''[[MV Kwasind|Kwasind]]'' and [[MV Hiawatha|''Hiawatha'']] to the mainland
* Hanlan's Island<ref>[https://www.openstreetmap.org/#map=18/43.61511/-79.38544 Hanlan's Island]</ref> – heavily forested and located in between Centre Island, located in Hanlan's Bay, near Lighthouse Pond

Three unnamed islands occupy what was once Block House Bay and Long Pond:
* an island (sometimes called Senator Frank Patrick O'Connor Island<ref>[https://www.openstreetmap.org/#map=18/43.62318/-79.36518 Senator Frank Patrick O'Connor Island]</ref>) – located in between Chippewa Island and Snake Island
* a small island (sometimes called Doughnut Island<ref>[https://www.openstreetmap.org/#map=17/43.61913/-79.38441 Doughnut Island]</ref>) in Long Pond (the former water intake of the City of Toronto) – located across from Mugg's Island
* another small island (sometimes called Duckling Island<ref>[https://www.openstreetmap.org/#map=19/43.61978/-79.37368 Duckling Island]</ref>) in Long Pond (completely covered in shrubbery)  – located near Middle Island

The Islands were originally a {{convert|9|km|mile|adj=mid|-long}} [[peninsula]] or [[sand spit]] extending from the mainland. The Islands are composed of [[alluvial deposit]]s from the erosion of the [[Scarborough Bluffs]]. The flow from the Niagara River to the south across Lake Ontario causes a counter-clockwise east-to-west current which has, over time, deposited sediments at the south end of the harbour to form a sand spit.

In 1852, a storm flooded sand pits on the peninsula, creating a channel east of Ward's Island.{{sfn|Wickson|2002|p=30}} The channel was widened and made permanent by a violent storm on April 13, 1858. The channel became known as the ''Eastern Gap''.<ref name="cityeg"/><ref name=cityti>{{cite web | url = http://www.toronto.ca/parks/island/index.htm | title = Toronto Island Park | publisher = City of Toronto | access-date = March 26, 2008}}</ref> The peninsula to the west became known as the Toronto Islands. To the east of the Gap, the area of today's Cherry Beach was known as "Fisherman's Island".

Sediment deposition to the Islands halted in the 1960s when the [[Leslie Street Spit]] was extended beyond the southern edge of the islands. Left to nature, the islands would diminish over time, but this is limited due to hard shorelines built to limit erosion. Over the years, [[land reclamation]] has contributed to an increase in the size of the islands. The harbour was shallow with a sandy bottom and the sands were moved by dredging or suction methods. Ward's Island was expanded by dredging. Today's Algonquin Island, formerly known as Sunfish Island, was created from harbour bottom sands.

The area now occupied by the airport has been subject to several landfills over what was once sandy [[shoal]], initially to accommodate the amusement park that preceded the airport, and then to accommodate the airport itself.<ref name="cityeg"/><ref name="cityti"/> The Western Channel to the north of the airport is part of the original western channel, which was just south of today's [[Fort York]]. It was opened in 1911 as part of a program to improve boat navigation into the harbour. The airport lands were created from harbour sands in the late 1930s.

A series of waterways allow boat traffic to navigate the Islands:
* Allan Lamport Regatta Course – located between Centre Island and Middle Island from Long Pond to east end of Far Enough Farm
* Block House Bay – located on the east side of Hanlan's Point
* Deep Pike Cut – located on the east side of Mugg's Island
* Hanlan's Bay – located in between Centre Island and Hanlan's Island
* Lighthouse Pond – located next to Gibraltar Point lighthouse
* Long Pond – located between Allan Lamport Regatta Course and Block House Bay; also referred to as Kennedy Pond in the 1890s
* Snake Pond – located between Snug Harbour and Algonquin Island
* Snug Harbour – located between Snake Island and Olympic Island
* Sunfish Cut - located between Snake Island and Algonquin Island
* Trout Pond – located west of Lighthouse Bay on the south end of Hanlan's Point

Hanlan's Bay/Lagoon was a waterway that has since been buried under the Toronto Island Airport runways.

Jim Crow Pond - filled in by South Island

Ward's Pond - located roughly along the south side of Olympic Island and South Island

[[File:About to dock at Ward's Island (11741126244).jpg|thumb|A partially frozen harbour on the Islands. Due to Lake Ontario's depth, the water in the lake is sometimes warmer than the air above it.]]

===Climate===
The Toronto Island has a [[humid continental climate]] (''Dfb'') under the [[Köppen climate classification]] system.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://en.climate-data.org/location/53/|title=Climate Toronto: Temperature, Climograph, Climate table for Toronto - Climate-Data.org|website=en.climate-data.org}}</ref>

The climate differs from the mainland in that cooler lake waters surrounding the island cool spring, summer and early fall daytime temperatures by 2–3&nbsp;°C, on average. In winter, the unfrozen lake waters are sometimes warmer than the air, temperatures are roughly equivalent to the downtown area but warmer than areas further away from the lake. Fog and low clouds are more frequent at the island than on the mainland. Nearshore areas of the lake only freeze after a consistent period of below-freezing weather.

The highest temperature ever recorded at Toronto Island was {{convert|37.2|C|F}} on 15 June 1919.<ref name="June 1919"/> The coldest temperature ever recorded was {{convert|-30.0|C|F}} on 13 January 1914.<ref name="January 1914"/>

{{Toronto Island Airport weatherbox}}