See nature in a new way
There once was a time when the thought of taking an eco cruise sounded a little odd, foreign, and a mystery. What, after all is an eco cruise? Many thousands of people have experienced, and many more will, the intense cultural, historical, scientific, and naturalistic value of taking an eco cruise, and they have and will learn the following: An eco cruise is devoted to understanding nature and the culture’s that depend on the nature of a certain area, such as Alaska.
An eco cruise is not party-oriented, as there are no casinos, pool parties, 2nd rate comics doing stand up late into the night, and no buffet area in which passengers can gorge themselves on pie. Those cruises are said to cause people to gain two pounds a day. One will be fed well on an eco cruise, but its focus is the land, nature and culture of the land in which one travels.
For example, The Boat Company, a small boat eco cruise company out of Sitka, AK, has been providing an award winning small boat eco cruise for over 30 years. Their goal is to impact the environment a little as possible while offering sustainable tours to nature loving, and respecting, people, and give them an up close and personally guided tour of areas not usually travelled by humans. Certainly, large cruise ships cannot go where these tours go, and often, the Alaska eco cruise is able to safely float to areas that vehicles cannot get to.
Less fuel is burned, especially when you get out in a kayak or dinghy, or raft, and float along with the abundant fish. Keep an eye out for a hump back whale, and catch your dinner for the chef to prepare from a stream teeming with sockeye salmon.
An onboard a small boat eco cruise, a naturalist guide will answer all your questions. Prepared and experienced, they will also take you on hike’s through an Alaskan rainforest in Tongass National Forest – yes, a rain forest in Alaska! There you will see and smell and taste flora and fauna, trees and bushes, blueberries and heather, and be taught their relation to the local eco-system. You will also learn how indigenous peoples survived on the land, how they made and are making a subsistence living. The benefit you provide by learning of their ways and truly buying any of their “local” products can even more benefit to the area.
The eco cruise is more than just a bunch of people talking about environmental issues. It is a cruise that allows likeminded people to get together and experience their love and concern, and to enhance their understanding of nature. Take time to learn more about an Alaskan small boat eco cruise.