Two years after a shipwreck off Vancouver Island claimed his boat, gear, and most treasured photographs, Vancouver artist Paul Burgoyne is about to be reunited with a piece of his past he thought lost forever.
In 2012, Burgoyne was sailing from Vancouver to his summer home in Tahsis, B.C., aboard his vessel, the Bootlegger. The trip ended in disaster when the boat wrecked, sending his belongings—including a camera loaded with priceless memories—into the depths.
Among the images were photos of a deeply personal family moment: relatives gathered to scatter his parents’ ashes at Lake of the Woods in Ontario. There was also video capturing turbulent seas in the hours before the sinking.