We are very excited, honored and humbled to be on Crystal Cruises inaugural sailing of the Northwest Passage recognizing that this is truly a trip of a lifetime. Very few people will ever have the opportunity to sail this route and Crystal Serenity is the largest passenger cruise ship to navigate the Northwest Passage. This voyage is even more unique, because very few guests, officers and other members of the crew who will be on-board Serenity have ever sailed the Northwest Passage. Crystal Serenity will be escorted by the 1995 built British Antarctic Survey research vessel Ernest Shackleton. Crystal also made arrangements with Tactical Marine Solutions to arrange this charter. The Northwest Passage route connects the Atlantic and the Pacific Oceans with the Arctic Ocean. The passage runs along the northern coast of North America via waterways through the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. The many islands of the archipelago are connected by a series of waterways, collectively known as the Northwest Passage or Northwestern Passages. In December of 2009, the Parliament of Canada renamed these waterways the Canadian Northwest Passage. For many centuries various explorers sought this route as a potential trade route. Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen first navigated it with a small expedition between 1903 and 1906. Up until 2009, this Arctic pack ice prevented regular marine shipping throughout most of the year. However, with changes in the pack ice, driven by the shrinking of the Arctic, it has allowed the waterways to be more navigable. What the future brings is anyone’s guess not only because of the overall climate but because the Canadian government considers the Northwestern Passages to be part of Canadian International Waters. However, the United States and several European countries maintain that they are an international strait and transit passage, allowing free and unencumbered passage. Before we depart on the Northwest Passage on August 16, we will spend a few days in Vancouver, BC commencing August 2, followed by a ten-day cruise starting August 6 between Vancouver and Seward, Alaska. Keep checking back for additional posts.
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