First Nations history honoured with ‘Canada 150’ cruises

As Canada celebrates its 150th anniversary this year, Maple Leaf Adventures will also mark 2017 in recognition and respect of the ancient history of indigenous peoples with a special West Coast sailing.

The Victoria-based company’s April 15 to 19 trip, in partnership with Canadian Geographic, is a chance for guests to explore the indigenous history of the Salish Sea. The trip is intended to coincide with Canada’s “reconciliation and reimagining” of its relationship with First Nations, says the company.

Two of the company’s gorgeous wooden vessels — the Maple Leaf, a three-masted 92-foot schooner, and the MV Swell, a refurbished 1920s-era 88-foot tugboat — travel in a two-ship flotilla. Guests will be taken on a discovery of thousands of years of Pacific Coast First Nations stories and art.

There will be plenty of opportunities to spot whales, sea birds and marine mammals off the path of busy ferry ports and learn about remote historic islands and hear Salish stories from the region through naturalists and historians and from a First Nations elder.

Kevin Smith, Maple Leaf’s president, said the company works with many First Nations along the coast, whose knowledge of the place and intimate ties go back millennia.

“As an ecotourism company, when people asked what we were doing for Canada’s 150th, we could only answer with a trip that included 15,000 years of history.”

Prices for the four-night, fiveday trip start at $2,390 plus tax and include shore excursions with local guides and gourmet meals. Victoria, B.C., is the departure and return point.

Bonus: Book this or any other Maple Leaf trip by Feb. 15 and you could get a free flight or hotel stay for one night.

More information at 250-3867245 or www.MapleLeafAdventures.com.