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San Juan and Gulf Islands:
Anacortes, WA. - Nanaimo, B.C.
Cruising the San Juan Islands of Washington and neighboring Gulf Islands of British Columbia, a gaze in any direction takes in island silhouettes. You can include visits to historic Victoria, world-renowned Butchart Gardens, or cosmopolitan Vancouver. We often spy bald eagles, Dall porpoises, and pods of orca whales. This coast offers more than just striking scenery - it's a recreational playground that offers opportunities for hiking, beach combing and visits ashore for fine dining or shopping.
North of Vancouver, you can travel up a massive fjord to view spectacular Princess Louisa Inlet's Chatterbox Falls.
Desolation Sound features dramatic scenery, and very warm water and air temperatures in the summer.
North of Desolation Sound, the channels are known for their strong currents and narrow passages. They mark the true beginning of the British Columbia wilderness. As you enter these less traveled channels, mountains rise higher from the sea and snow permanently covers their peaks.
Hundreds of protected anchorages are available in the Broughton Archipelago/Port Hardy area, Knight Inlet, Kingcome Inlet, Sullivan Bay and Blackfish Sound. You can explore the communities of Alert Bay, Port McNeil and Port Hardy. Big Bay and Minstrel Island Resort are also well-known stopovers for wilderness explorers.
Southeast Alaska:
From the Misty Fjords area north to Glacier Bay, this region is packed with coves and anchorages for exploration. The Southeast climate is milder than farther north, and the fishing and crabbing are excellent. In addition to spectacular scenery, visits to Ketchikan, Wrangle, Petersburg, Sitka and Juneau offer a glimpse of historic frontier life. Surrounded by wilderness, these cities retain their "gold rush" flavor and offer a wealth of historical, cultural and natural history.
Misty Fjords National Monument encompasses over 2 million acres of remote beauty. Shear rock-faced fjords are broken by numerous waterfalls and snow remains on the peaks all summer.
Sightings of Orca whales and grizzly bears fishing for salmon are also possible. Navigate ice-choked waters to view magnificent tidal and hanging glaciers. The beauty of the steeply walled fjords and narrow passages is breathtaking.
From Ketchikan, travel north through Tongass Narrows, along the west coast of Cleveland Peninsula in Clarence Strait, which opens up into Ernest Sound. We then pass Wrangell Island through the Eastern Passage or west through Zimovia Strait. Both offer many anchorages, opportunities for fishing, and spectacular scenery. Finally, an exciting passage through 21-mile Wrangell Narrows leads to Petersburg.
Glaciers influence the waters around Petersburg, a lovely city founded by Norwegian settlers in 1877. Nearby Frederick Sound is frequented by humpback whales that return each summer to feed - researchers have identified 400-500 individuals. Nearby LeConte Glacier is the southernmost tidewater glacier in North America.
Possibilities include Ketchikan, Petersburg, Sitka, Juneau, and Glacier Bay.
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