Cruising the Pacific Northwest In Search Of Craft Beer and Killer Whales
Photos by Lindsay MacNevin
On embarkation day for Un-Cruise Adventure’s first craft beer themed sailing of the season, the majority of the passengers loading onto the ship are baby boomers. But this trip unites wilderness and wildlife lovers with craft beer enthusiasts, so I did spot a few young ones in the crowd.
With the explosion of craft beer and its growth in popularity, it wasn’t surprising when the cruise lines jumped ship and got in on the action. While many larger cruise lines offer craft beer on tap, Un-Cruise isn’t your typical cruise line. Their Wilderness Discoverer vessel can only hold 76 passengers at a time. Which means, more brews for you.
It wasn’t too long ago that I thought cruising wasn’t about craft beer and personalized experiences, but oversized ships, buffets, casinos and photos with fake backdrops. On my way to the San Juan Islands with Un-Cruise, however, instead of the elaborate shows and gambling guests, I found a library full of books on the area, home cooked meals, like-minded people, and two of Seattle’s best craft beer experts.
Un-Cruise Adventures joined forces with craft beer pros from the state of Washington two years ago, creating a seven-night beer vacation around Washington and the San Juan Islands on the 176-foot-long Wilderness Discoverer. Not only do passengers of the Discoverer get the exceptional adventure activities, wildlife sightings, personalized service and incredible dining that Un-Cruise always offers but they also get craft ales onboard as well as brewery visits along the route.
Although Un-Cruise does its best to lay out an itinerary for the week, much is dependent on the weather and water conditions, which on a Pacific Northwest itinerary can be difficult to predict. Luckily this company has a way of bringing out the sunshine, and the kayaks and stand up paddleboards are put to good use throughout the week.
On one of the days, heading to Protection Island, everyone gets the chance to experience a guided kayak around the shores of this interesting and mysterious island. The isle boasts a whopping 70 percent of the nesting seabird population of Puget Sound and the Strait of Juan de Fuca. It is home to one of the largest nesting colonies of rhinoceros auklets in the world and the largest nesting colony of glaucous-winged gulls in Washington, making it a must visit for any bird lover. Although visitors are banned from going closer than 200 yards to shore, Un-Cruise provides waterproof binoculars, giving kayakers a great glimpse of the island full of winged-wanderers.
