Point Roberts is on the itinerary as National Geographic with Lindblad Expeditions offers three cruises exploring the Salish Sea this month.
“Come ashore in the pene-exclave of Point Roberts, Washington, where the 1846 Treaty of Oregon between Britain and the United States declared the 49th Parallel the border between the territories and effectively created a geographic oddity,” the itinerary states.
“You can’t travel to Point Roberts by land without passing through Canada, and if you have a child in 4th grade or above, you had better pack their passport with their lunch, for they have to pass through two border crossings to attend school on the U.S. mainland.”
Cruises depart from Seattle on October 2, 9 and 16 and the stop in Point Roberts will be on day three of the itinerary. The National Geographic Venture will anchor either off of Lily Point or the Point Roberts Marina and passengers will be brought ashore by Zodiac, said Karen Kuest, expedition development manager for North and Central America. “We’re still working out the details,” she said.
The plan is for the approximately 50 passengers being brought ashore to explore Lily Point Marine Park and other natural areas of Point Roberts.
“We’re trying to ‘stay wild’ to protect our guests but also the locals by avoiding highly populated areas,” Kuest said. All passengers must be fully vaccinated and have a negative Covid-19 test before embarking, she added.
The stop in Point Roberts is part of a redesigned itinerary due to the closure of Canadian ports to cruise traffic. What had previously been a one-way trip from Seattle to Vancouver became a loop.
“Point Roberts is something different and an obvious stop on a loop of the best of the Salish Sea,” Kuest said.
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