Inside Passage Sailing Adventure – Detailed Information
Leg One: Juneau, Alaska to Prince Rupert, British Columbia
Dates - June 14 to July 5, 2011
Cost - $3500 to $3800
The first three-week leg takes you from Juneau southward through the deep wilderness of southeast Alaska. Before heading south, however, we will make a week-long detour to Glacier Bay National Park. The marine wilderness of Glacier Bay includes tidewater glaciers, snow-capped mountain ranges, rugged coastlines, deep fjords, and freshwater waterfalls, rivers and lakes. A globally significant marine and terrestrial sanctuary, Glacier Bay is part of one of the largest internationally protected Biosphere Reserves in the world, and is recognized by the United Nations as a World Heritage Site. Perhaps most famous for the glaciers that continually calve into its turquoise waters, Glacier Bay is the northern terminus and summer feeding-grounds for migrating Humpback Whales and hundreds of species of pelagic birds, including the tufted puffin. After exploring aquamarine glaciers, thundering waterfalls, and colossal old-growth forests, we will turn south and begin our thousand-mile passage through the narrow fjords, island archipelagos and open crossings that make-up the Inside Passage. Over the next fourteen days, you will fall into the rhythm of life at sea as you practice the finer techniques of sailing a fast boat. Our days of sailing will be punctuated by side-trips and day-hikes through stunning landscapes, to Alaskan resource towns and world-renowned wildlife reserves, including Tracy Arm, Ketchikan and the Khutzeymateen Grizzly Bear Sanctuary. Your trip will conclude in the small logging and fishing community of Ketchikan, Alaska where you will catch a flight back to Salt Lake City, via Seattle.
Leg Two: Kethcikan, AK to Port Hardy, B.C.
Dates: July 5 to July 20, 2011
Cost: $2500 to $2700
The second two-week leg starts at Kethcikan, Alaska and heads south through the bulk of the Inside Passage to Campbell River on the east coast of Vancouver Island. Immediately upon leaving Ketchikan, you will enter the Great Bear Rainforest, the largest stretch of untrammeled old-growth temperate rainforest left in the world. Spanning twenty-five thousand square miles of coastal and mountainous wilderness, the Great Bear Rainforest is home to thousand-year-old red cedars, sitka spruce and western hemlock, trees of profound import to the native people in this region. A sanctuary to major cornerstone species, including grizzly bears, cougars, and grey wolves, the region is famous for the Kermode bear, a highly unique species of black bear with white fur. Evening anchorages in the Great Bear Rainforest will often be spent at the mouth of a large river valley or salmon-spawning stream. If we are lucky, we will discover one of the hundreds of natural hot springs throughout the region. Heading further south, you will enter the Broughton Archipelago, consisting of hundreds of small, undeveloped islands that are home to bountiful marine life, including the largest Orca population in the Pacific Northwest.
Leg Three: Student and Parent Cruise – Port Hardy, B.C. to Bellingham, WA
Dates: July 20 to July 26, 2011
Cost: $1050 – note this applies to each student and parent and does not cover the cost of transportation to/from the boat for the parent
In the final days of our cruise through the Inside Passage, we are inviting parents of the students on the second leg to join us as we sail through wild Desolation Sound and into the sublime Gulf and San Juan Islands. For students, this leg offers the opportunity to extend your passage into a three-week odyssey and experience the cultured beauty of southern British Columbia. Students may sail this leg with or without an accompanying parent. For parents, this leg offers the opportunity to voyage into your child’s world of the past several weeks, witness first-hand their remarkable growth as sailors and young adults, share in a unique and awesome adventure experience, and explore a stunningly beautiful landscape while learning the fundamentals of sailing. In addition to our time on the water, we will explore gorgeous, wild anchorages and quaint Canadian villages by foot and kayak. After enjoying a sumptuous meal of freshly-caught salmon, we will spend our evenings watching the setting sun turn the native arbutus trunks a raging orange in hopes that, once darkness has fallen, the warm, sheltered waters will reveal the fiery glow of bioluminescence.
Entire Passage: Juneau to Bellingham, WA
Dates: June 14 to July 26, 2011
Cost: $6600
Course Expectations
Trip participants must be mature enough to handle the physical, emotional, and mental challenges of an extended sailing expedition. As this is a Waterford-sponsored trip, all school behavior standards apply, as outlined in the current Student-Parent Handbook. Any student who chooses to disregard these standards will be sent home at her or his parents’ expense.
Each student will keep a personal journal of his or her travels, assist in maintaining the ship’s log, and be responsible for at least one in-depth presentation on the natural or cultural history of the course area. In addition, each student will participate in daily activities that complement the educational aspects of the journey. Trip participants will be responsible for creating an evening presentation for their parents and siblings at the conclusion of the trip.
