BC Ferries and the Canadian West Coast

Gordon Turner is the author of Empress of Britain: Canadian Pacific’s
Greatest Ship and the editor of SeaFare, a quarterly newsletter on sea
travel.

Carrying more than 22 million passengers a year, BC Ferries’ 40 ships
ply the coastal waters year-round on a variety of routes, their voyages
running from 10 minutes to 33 hours. The ships themselves range in size
from tiny local commuter ferries to the 377-foot-long Queen of the
North, which sails between Port Hardy and Prince Rupert.

Passengers aboard the ferries can observe spectacular scenery. They may
catch a glimpse of a pod of killer whales, an abandoned salmon cannery,
or a modern fishing lodge. Some of them may wonder about the workings of
the ferries themselves. This pleasingly designed and handsomely
illustrated guidebook (about half of which consist of photographs and
maps) provides an excellent introduction to the attractions of the ships
and the areas they serve.