Inside Passage

What a lucky day! Sunny weather for the 15 hours ferry trip from Prince Rupert through the Inside Passage to Port Hardy on Vancouver Island. And again no dull moments.
We had some mixed feelings when we booked this (expensive) ferry ticket months ago, as the weather on the West Coast can be changeable and rainy.

Check-In with BC Ferries started at 5.30 am, departure at 7.30 am. We were lucky to have the 'Northern Expedition', the newest ship of their fleet. Here some facts: built in 2009, max speed 21 knots and capacity for 638 passenger & crew. Luckily there were not masses of people on board, giving plenty of space to everyone.

The cruise was just stunning. Except the last 1.5 hours the ship is only navigating through channels, passing endless islands and well separated from the open sea. We had great views of the scenery and saw a few whales and dolphins, although not from very near.

One of the most famous stretches is Grenville Channel, 70 kilometers long and surrounded by mountains of 1500 to 3500 ft. The narrowest portion is a mere 1400 ft wide but the sea depth allows vessels to travel close to the shore. The picture is from the beginning of the channel, before it became really narrow.

We had only one stop, at the island with the nice name of Bella Bella, where a few people & cars left the ferry, some others boarded. Plus two lorries with fresh fish were loaded. The arrival at Port Hardy at 11 pm and happy to have a pre-booked hotel room.