Summertime Is the season of choice for Alaska and the Pacific Northwest, where majestic vistas and snow capped mountains meet warm weather cruising, fishing, hiking and explorations. You would be hard-pressed to find a charter destination anywhere else in the Americas that rivals the grandeur of Alaska’s towering glaciers, while the Inside Passage between Vancouver Island and mainland British Columbia blends beauty of Desolution Sound with the on-shore excitement of Victoria, Canada and Seattle.
Alaska offers a charter environment unlike any other. The sheer beauty of the place-the blue ice, white snow and green water-is a testament to nature’s prowess. When you add encounters with everything from humpback whales to land roaming brown bear’s, it’s easy to understand just how unique Alaska is. One-way itineraries are ideal, and they often jump from Juneau to Sitka, or vise versa.
Start at the cannery in Juneau, where you can sample smoked, candied or otherwise preserved salmon from the local fishing fleets, and then cruises to Tracy Arm, Where Sawyer Glacier is calving massive chunks of centuries-old ice into the sea. Your charter yacht’s crew can help you catch king crab for a delicious feast, or simply carve off a few chips of ice from a floating berg to chill your favorite cocktail.
At the southern end of the Inside Passage are the San Juan Islands. Yachts can begin an itinerary in Seattle and then cruise westward to this much quieter archipelago. Snow-capped Mount Baker provides a memorable background as your charter yacht sits anchored in 80-degree weather off Sucia Island. Seasonal whale migrations take place here, too, and you can mix some whale watching into an itinerary that also stops at the world-famous Butchart Gardens on Vancouver Island near Victoria, as well as the touted high tea experience at Victoria’s Fairmont Empress hotel.