Great Bear Rainforest Sailing

You should schedule your flight to arrive in Terrace today. Accommodations and meals are not included today.

Pick up on the morning of Day 1 will be at select hotels in Terrace (refer to your Itinerary Package for further details). The shuttle will transfer guests from Terrace to Kitimat where you will meet your crew & vessel. Following boarding, we’ll depart into a land of dense forests reaching to the water’s edge, towering rocky fjords, and lush valley estuaries.

As we explore the waters of southern Douglas Channel and at various other places along our journey, we expect to encounter humpback whales. We’ll take the time to observe these 15-metre-long creatures whenever the opportunity arises and hope to witness spectacular behaviours like breaches, pectoral slaps, and possibly bubble-net feeding (an amazing cooperative foraging technique). We also hope to have luck in spotting other marine mammals like fin whales, orca, porpoise, and Steller sea lions. Time allowing, we may visit local whale researchers to learn about their fascinating work.

There may be an opportunity to visit Bishop Bay hot springs for a soothing soak amidst an eclectic collection of fishing floats.

As we travel along Princess Royal Island, we keep a close watch on the shoreline, since this is the best-known area for seeing the elusive, all-white Spirit bear (also known as Kermode bear). These white bears are black bears expressing a genetic variation resulting in light coloured fur. We are fortunate to spend a day with local Gitga’at First Nation guides who will take us to their favourite bear viewing areas. With a little patience, we hope to be lucky enough to see black bears and the Spirit bear fishing for salmon at quiet spawning streams hidden in the thick of the forest.

This unique coastal ecosystem supports impressive biodiversity – from salmon and marine mammals in the sea, to bears, coastal wolves, birds, and massive trees on land. We expect some good grizzly viewing at the water’s edge when visiting lush estuaries in the beautiful river valley of Khutze Inlet (K’ootz/Khutze Conservancy) and Fiordland Conservancy with its rocky cliff faces.

Our trip finishes in the small First Nations coastal town of Bella Bella – also known as Waglisla – which is the home of the Heiltsuk First Nation. We will arrive at the Bella Bella Municipal Dock just before noon in time to catch the afternoon flight back to Vancouver. Guests can also explore the area further on their own – nearby Shearwater is a short seabus ride away and offers the most amenities for visitors.