One of the most iconic trips in British Columbia is a voyage through the amazing Inside Passage, a mostly protected ocean route that’s sheltered by a string of islands that buffer the sometimes deadly fury of the North Pacific.
The Inside Passage starts in Puget Sound in Washington State, and makes its way northward past Vancouver Island and into B.C.’s Central and North Coasts and into the Alaskan Panhandle.
It is a very popular cruiseship route, and before the COVID-19 era, millions of passengers would cruise up and down the coast.
For British Columbians, however, many of us think of the inside passage as starting at Port Hardy and making its way some 500 kilometres to Prince Rupert.
Many opt to take a B.C. Ferries vessel from Port Hardy for the trip, and the regularly scheduled service features magnificent views from massive ship-board windows, plus food and entertainment too. (Note, although the ferry is currently running, because of the COVID-19 crisis, at the time this article was posted, food was not available for sale. Non-essential travel is discouraged at this time. Check this website for current conditions.)
There are various stops along the way, including Klemtu, Bella Bella and others.
Humpback whales and orcas are commonly seen in the area, as are other marine area wildlife, such as dolphins, eagles, bears and more. On one especially memorable stop at Bella Bella, we saw salmon jumping in the thousands before making their way into local streams to spawn.
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