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CRUISES - ITINERARIES
MAINE Summer 2011 | CANADA MARITIME Summer 2011
CANADA/GREENLAND Summer 2011 | GREENLAND/ NOVA SCOTIA Summer 2011
ALASKA Summer 2014
CARIBBEAN Winter 2010/11 : Cuelbra, Spanish Virgin Islands
CANADA/GREENLAND Summer 2011 | GREENLAND/ NOVA SCOTIA Summer 2011
ALASKA Summer 2014
CARIBBEAN Winter 2010/11 : Cuelbra, Spanish Virgin Islands
See our 2011 Schedule for full date and rate information.
Repositioning cruise from New York City, NY to Gloucester, MA (April 25-30, 2011)
Welcome aboard the Wanderbird for our increasingly popular repositioning cruise. We will depart from Atlantic Basin in Red Hook, Brooklyn, NY and cruise through the city and up the East River into Long Island Sound. Some of our ports of call might be Block Island RI, Newport, RI, New Bedford, MA through the Cape Cod Canal and on to Provincetown. We will also be crossing the whale and sea bird rich waters of Stelwagen Marine Sanctuary before finishing up in the world famous fishing port of Gloucester, MA. This trip will fill quickly so please make reservations early!
Mothership Kayaking Expedition (May 23-28, 2011)
Puffins! Spring is nesting season! Aboard Wanderbird, along with Castine Kayak Adventures, we will take you to different scenic paddling locations along the Maine coast. Each morning after a hearty and delicious breakfast we will launch the kayaks to travel as guided group to explore remote and beautiful areas of the coast and islands that are not usually accessible from shore-based launching sites, with your professional Maine Sea Kayak Guide/Instructor. We'll explore the nooks and crannies of the islands and picnic on beaches. In the late afternoon, we'll meet back aboard the Wanderbird for showers, refreshments, and a comfortable place to relax and unwind, before sitting down to enjoy a fine evening meal. One day we will travel offshore for a rare treat; to view nesting seabirds and puffins. We will anchor near a very remote sanctuary and kayak along the shore to view puffins, tern, murres, razor bill, eider ducks and other nesting seabirds. Some paddling experience would be nice, but all levels are welcome as this is a great opportunity to enhance your coastal paddling experience and navigational skills. Top quality sea kayaks, gear and guide included. (Your own gear is an option too!).
Repositioning Cruise: Sail as a Crew Member from Halifax, Nova Scotia to Belfast, Maine (Sept 7-12, 2011)
Join us as a guest crew member aboard the Wanderbird as we reposition the vessel from Nova Scotia to Maine. You will meet us at the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic in the heart of the historic Halifax waterfront. You’ll have the opportunity to stand watch, navigate with the captain, visit interesting ports such as: Lunenburg, Nova Scotia. This is a unique opportunity to experience a real taste of life at sea and to learn from highly experienced professional mariners on a well found little ship. Space is limited to 8.
- Please be advised that Travel Insurance and Emergency Evacuation Insurance are recommended for this trip.
- Guests are responsible for their own travel costs and arrangements to and from our start and end points in Nova Scotia and Maine.
Do you enjoy classic cuisine paired with local wine, good company & extraordinary scenery? Then come aboard for a great cruise among the islands of Maine. Karen will be back in the galley for this cruise, preparing her favourite dishes from her native Maine coast. Finan Haddie, locally raised beef paired with a blueberry dry, lobsterman’s seafood stew, farmer’s market butternut squash roasted with garlic & locally made sausage in a delicious soup, and for a special treat Karen will introduce us to the art of the Classic Maine Picnic complete with red check cloth & picnic basket!
Mothership Kayaking (Sept. 19-24, 2011)
Aboard Wanderbird, along with Castine Kayak Adventures, we will take you to different scenic paddling locations along the Maine coast. Each morning after a hearty and delicious breakfast, we will launch the kayaks for a group paddle to explore remote and beautiful areas of the coast and islands that are not usually accessible from shore-based launching sites, with your professional Maine Sea Kayak Guide/Instructor. We'll explore the nooks and crannies of the islands and picnic on beaches. In the late afternoon, we'll meet back aboard the Wanderbird for showers, refreshments, and a comfortable place to relax and unwind, before sitting down to enjoy a fine evening meal. Some paddling experience would be nice, but all levels are welcome as this is a great opportunity to enhance your coastal paddling experience and navigational skills. Top quality sea kayaks, gear and guide included. (Your own gear is an option too!)
Maine Lighthouse Cruise (Sept 26-October 1, 2011)
Chart a course for the scenic lighthouses of Penobscot Bay. Each one is beautiful and unique with an interesting history and even some spooky legends! Aboard the Wanderbird, we will have the special opportunity to view some of the very remote offshore lighthouses such a Mt. Desert Rock, Matinicus Light, Isle Au Haut, or Monhegan Light. Other lighthouses we are likely to see are: Owl's Head, Whitehead, Pumpkin Island, Dice's Head, Grindle Point, Hockamock Head, Indian Island and many more. We'll spend time ashore, as well, where we can actually visit and explore around some beautiful old Maine Lighthouses.
Maine Coast Hiking Cruise (October 3-8, 2011)
One of our most popular cruises! We spend extra time each day hiking on some of Penobscot Bay's most beautiful Islands and State Parks. The exertion level is up to you. You’ll experience hiking along rocky dramatic shores, woodland island trails and picturesque tiny island communities. Some of our favourite hiking locations are; quaint North Haven Village and the surrounding countryside, Holbrook Island Wildlife Preserve, Fort Point Seaside Trails and State Park, picturesque Swan's Island, and Warren Island State Park.
Fantastic Fall Foliage Cruise (October 10-15, 2011)
You've never seen the foliage like this before. Look across the decks toward the mainland for colours that go on as far as you can see. Cool clear nights with absolutely amazing stars grace our skies on these late season trips, and warm up with hot mulled local cider and seasonal favourites from the galley!
- Please note that dates and prices are subject to change
- Maine cruises depart and arrive from our home port in Belfast, ME
- Guests are responsible for their own travel costs and arrangements to and from our start and end points.
- Educational Charters Welcome - Family Charters Welcome
See our 2011 Schedule for full date and rate information.
Expedition Cruise: Exploring the West Coast of Newfoundland & Southern Labrador (July 4-13, 2011)
You will join the good ship Wanderbird at the wonderful French Island of St. Pierre. This little piece of France is only 15 miles off the coast of Newfoundland though you could easily imagine that you were walking the streets of a small town outside of Paris.
Next Port of Call is Fortune Bay, Newfoundland where we will declare customs & begin an exploration of the remote and beautiful out ports along the south coast that are only accessible from the sea. You’ll be amazed at the beauty of these small villages with names like Isle aux Morts, Grand Bruit, Ramea & Francois. We will also be visiting and exploring some of the largest navigable fjords in North America with sheer walls over a thousand feet high. The real magic of this cruise will be in meeting the Newfoundlanders themselves. After many years of cruising here, the Wanderbird is a recognisable vessel that always draws a crowd. We will sample Newfoundland treats such as scruncheons, cod cheeks and tongues, fresh rhubarb and wild berries if we can find them. Great whales and birding! This past trip we saw Orcas at the mouth of Bay D’Espoir!
We’ll cruise up this magnificent and rugged coast to Gros Morne National Park & Bonne Bay on the west coast of Newfoundland. You’ll have a chance to explore the geological wonders of the park, hike & look down upon Wanderbird snugly anchored in this deep fjord from stunning mountaintop vistas.
We will keep our eyes open for icebergs as we travel further north through the Straits of Belle Isle to Labrador and enter the famous “Ice Berg Alley.” Some of the communities that we may visit in Labrador include: Red Bay; an old whaling station and National Historic Site, abandoned community called Henley Harbour, or Battle Harbour; also a National Historic Site.
Our final destination will be St. Anthony on the Northern Peninsula of Newfoundland, home of the Grenfell Museum. From this location we’ll have the opportunity to visit the archaeological site L'Anse Aux Meadows. It is the only known site of a Norse village in North America outside of Greenland. The site is notable for possible connections with the attempted colony of Vinland established by Leif Ericson around 1003 and with Norse exploration of the Americas.
- Please be advised that Travel Insurance and Emergency Evacuation Insurance are required for this trip.
- Guests are responsible for their own travel costs and arrangements to and from our start and end points in Newfoundland & France.
See our 2011 Schedule for full date and rate information.
Expedition Cruise: Land of the Midnight Sun; Arctic Voyage to Wild Labrador and Greenland (July 21 - August 6, 2011)
Our Northern Expedition will begin in Makkovik, Labrador where you will join the Wanderbird and be treated to a welcome or "Atelihai" feast prepared by local residents. Makkovik is part of Nunatsiavut; "Our Beautiful Land" in Inuttitut, the home of the Labrador Inuit.
We will head due North from Makkovik as we visit some of the remote Inuit settlements on the wild coast of Labrador. Ports of call may include Hopedale, Nain, Hebron, Okak or Nutak where you will experience Labrador Inuit culture. Time will be spent exploring in the Torngat Mountains National Park in search of the great white bear.
This is a once in a lifetime opportunity to see healthy Polar Bear in their natural habitat! We will also look for black bear, wolves, caribou, whales, seals & seabirds.
We will continue north possibly as far as the Button Islands and/or Baffin Island home to resident herds of walrus, as we wait for a fine weather window for our sixty hour crossing of the Davis Strait to Disko Bay in Greenland.
As we reach Disko Bay, we will sail amidst a parade of icebergs en route to Greenlandic communities; an out of this worldly experience... pure Greenland! We’ll meet the people who inhabit this demanding coastal environment, visit cultural sites and historic communities where sledge dogs out number the people. We’ll visit many spectacular fjords with calving glaciers.
We will spend time cruising and exploring in Disko Bay in search of whales, experience the stunning bold & immense landscape, view sublime natural wonders, while enjoying the amazing Arctic experience of midnight sun!
Our final destination will be the community of Ilulissat in Disco Bay in Greenland. Ilulissat means ‘the icebergs’ in Greenlandic and is located next to Sermeq kujalleq, the most productive glacier in the northern hemisphere. Your adventure will end in a grand finale as you hike above the community of Ilulissat, through an area where the sledge dogs are tied, to gaze out upon the Ilulissat Ice fjord, where the mighty Greenland Ice cap pours into the sea!
This is an Arctic Expedition of a lifetime and we would like to experience it with 12 like minded travellers who are easy going, friendly, polite, and of course, adventurous! You must posses a true sense of adventure, and a willingness to experience this awesome Arctic Voyage as it presents itself.
We are not like other ships - we take you to places where 100 passenger ships cannot go, and we offer an intimate, spontaneous and unique experience! We want those of you who join us to be fully prepared for the culture and climate in which we will be travelling. Our job is to provide you with a safe & sound vessel, an experienced & friendly crew, room and board, and a unique adventure to some of the most beautiful, remote and rewarding places on this planet. You can see all these places quite well on Google Earth!
- Please be advised that Travel Insurance and Emergency Evacuation Insurance are required for this trip.
- Guests are responsible for their own travel costs and arrangements to and from our start and end points in Labrador & Greenland.
Join us as a guest crew member aboard the Wanderbird as we reposition the vessel from Greenland to Nova Scotia. We will spend a few days exploring wild and beautiful Disko Bay in Greenland before sailing across the famous Davis Straits for Northern Labrador. We will cruise south along the coast of Labrador into the Straits of Belle Isle and the west coast of Newfoundland across the Cabot Straits and down the coasts of Cape Breton Island and Nova Scotia finishing in Halifax, Nova Scotia. You’ll have the opportunity to stand watch, navigate with the captains, & visit interesting ports such as Lunenburg, Nova Scotia. This is a unique opportunity to experience a real taste of life at sea and to learn from highly experienced professional mariners on a well found little ship. Space is limited to 8.
The WANDERBIRD is accepting bookings for the 2014 season in Alaska! Plan ahead and be sure you have your space reserved. WANDERBIRD is also available for charters between scheduled cruises.
In 2014 we will cruise aboard the Wanderbird in South East Alaska along the famous Inside Passage in the beautiful Tongass National Forest. We have both dreamed of doing this since we were kids and we feel that the time is right to make it happen. The Wanderbird is the perfect vessel for such a cruise and we feel that she is as anxious to go as we are! We will leave Maine in October of 2013 and make the trip around in charterable stages. These stages will be available to the more adventurous of you who would like to join us as we reposition the vessel almost 5000 nautical miles. There will be more to follow on these repositioning legs with stages such as Maine to Bermuda, Bermuda to the US Virgin Islands, The San Blas Islands, a transit of the Panama Canal and more!
Our 2014 schedule in SE Alaska will find us cruising the inside passage on seven day expeditions between Petersburg, Sitka and Juneau Alaska.
Highlights:
The Tongass National Forest, the nation's largest national forest, covers most of Southeast Alaska, surrounding the famous Inside Passage. It offers unique chances to view eagles, bears, spawning salmon, and the breath-taking vistas of "wild" Alaska.
Petersburg:
We are pleased to visit this vibrant fishing community with a strong Norwegian heritage. Located in protected waters filled with islands and bays and harbors, the area and waterways are rich with wildlife just waiting to be explored. Here we find friendly people, lush forests, glaciers, whale watching and birding. The ocean waters around Petersburg, AK are the summer home to over 500 humpback whales.
Sitka:
With views of island-studded waters and stately spruce forests reaching to the water’s edge, Sitka is considered Alaska’s most beautiful seaside town. Yet Sitka’s hallmark is its tenure and devotion to a culturally diverse past.
Ancestral home of the Tlingit Indians, captured by the Russians, sold to the Americans – Sitka carries the legacy of each. While this fascinating heritage is well documented in local museums, Sitka’s ancestry isn’t found only in shelved archives and artifacts. Rather it is all around.
Sitka is home to 24 attractions listed on the National Register of Historic Places, seven of which are National Historical Landmarks. Visitors won’t find a lack of explanation for the incredible sites, whether embarking on one of several walking or vehicle tours, or chatting with a long-time resident. Sitkans are rightfully proud and simply eager to share the folklore.
Juneau:
Juneau, Alaska's capital city is the third largest city in the state. Like Alaska, Juneau is full of contrasts, a sophisticated cosmopolitan city in the heart of the Tongass National Forest. Nestled at the base of towering mountains overlooking the Gastineau Channel, the community's rich culture and history is displayed throughout the town. Juneau has a vibrant urban feel with great dining, shopping and lodging, while being surrounded by jaw-dropping scenic vistas. A visit to Juneau delivers tastes that delight the senses. From Alaska salmon, halibut and crab to sourdough bagels, homemade fudge, and award-winning coffee and beer, Juneau can satisfy even the most discriminating palate. As we take to the water and cruise past the area's beautiful glacial landscapes, we will often see sea lions and graceful humpback whales.
- Please note that dates and prices are subject to change
- Guests are responsible for their own travel costs and arrangements to and from our start and end points.
- Educational Charters Welcome - Family Charters Welcome
The Wanderbird is based in Culebra this winter for week-long cruises departing from and returning to this magical island.
It
is incredibly beautiful around the Spanish Caribbean Islands.
Snorkeling, climbing for fresh coconuts, pale blue warm salty water,
amazing cute little seaside towns, roaming wild horses originally
brought by the Spaniards on Vieques, iguanas and wild chickens on
Culebra and post card beaches... Life is good. Come join us!Located about nineteen miles east of Puerto Rico and eight miles north of Vieques, Culebra is the smallest of the inhabited Spanish Virgin Islands. She is seven miles long and 3 miles wide. Her many beaches are some of the most beautiful in the world.
Culebra is an arid island, having no rivers or streams. She gets her water from Puerto Rico via Vieques. Because of the lack of run-off from streams and rivers, Culebra boasts crystal clear waters with sixty feet of visibility on a bad day.
Culebra is an island municipality under the domain of Puerto Rico, which has been under the protection of the United States, since its annexation from Spain in 1898. In 1909 the Culebra National Wildlife Refuge was established. The refuge takes in over one thousand four hundred acres of land and is well known both as a nesting area for numerous seabirds, as well as the endangered leatherback turtle and Culebra giant anole.
Culebra has about three thousand residents. The quiet, unspoiled island has little to offer in nightlife, except for a quiet, safe walk in the moonlight or the occasional sound of guitar music from one of her few night spots. The island has little crime and very little to do, but relax at the beach or your favorite watering hole. The snorkeling and scuba diving around Culebra are outstanding. Hard and soft corals abound in the shallows and magnificent reefs encircle the island. Tropical fish and other sea life abound. The depths rarely exceed one hundred feet.
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