The Antarctic Peninsula is the most accessible part of the great white continent with some of its best wildlife and scenery. Ice-choked waterways, sculpted icebergs, imposing glaciers and rugged mountains provide the back drop to an area with more whales and dolphins than anywhere else on earth.
High above the Arctic Circle lies the remarkable archipelago known in Norwegian as Svalbard. Spitsbergen, the main island, means “jagged peaks” and befits this remarkable land with its spectacular coastline, littered with glaciers flowing into the sea, and high cliffs with endless opportunities for viewing wildlife.
South Georgia is a remote, rugged and hauntingly beautiful sub-Antarctic island. Its scenery ranges from impressive mountains and mighty glaciers to deep fjords and low-lying grassland. Renowned as an excellent birdwatching destination, it has more wildlife than virtually anywhere else on the planet.
The remote eastern side of the Antarctic Peninsula is one of the white continents hidden gems. A deeply incised, 2,000-kilometre wide bay, the upwelling of cold water provides food for any creature hardy enough to withstand the intense cold. It is also famed for its huge ice shelves and flat-topped icebergs.
One of the two largest slands that form the Haida Gwaii, the San Cristobal Mountains form its backbone and rise over 1200 metres. The higher elevations are dominated by mountain hemlock and alpine tundra, whereas the lower elevations are mainly cedar, pine and western hemlock, becoming densely wooded.
This untouched wilderness offers unrivalled opportunities to watch and photograph some of North America's most notable wildlife, including massive brown bears, soaring bald eagles and large pods of orcas. Situated 70 kilometres north of Campbell River, Glendale Cove is accessible by floatplane.
Arguably one of the most beautiful and diverse landscapes in the world, Gwaii Haanas National Park is a remote reserve of 138 islands in the southern Haida Gwaii. The park – the place of wonder – is an untamed wilderness home to a superb array of marine life and land species, including the humpback whale.
The peaks of the seven largest islands of this archipelago rise like a submerged mountain chain, with the tallest perpetually capped in snow. Fiords plunge into the sea, misty forests cover their flanks and windswept sandy beaches lie at their feet and the continental shelf plummets into the Pacific Ocean.
If you long to see emperor penguins, the largest species of penguin, which is rarely found outside the High Antarctic, then this is the area to view them. Around one third of the world’s population breed in the Ross Sea area, as well as a substantial number of Adélie penguins.
Situated between Vancouver Island and British Columbia’s mainland, this area is considered the best place in the world to observe orca who, during the summer months, are present on a daily basis. They can often be viewed close up from the boat, offering some wonderful sightings and photo opportunities.
The Lemaire Channel is an 11 kilometre strait off Antarctica leading to a jigsaw of jewel like islands. Filled with icebergs and hemmed in by steep glacial cliffs, the waters are calm and passing through it makes for an unforgettably scenic journey, upon which orca or humpback whales may be seen.
North East Greenland NP is the world’s largest (almost 1m sqkm). Though the park is part of the Greenland Ice Sheet, there are large ice-free areas of green mountains with beautiful wild flowers, long fjords, precipitous cliffs and hot springs. Off shore, huge icebergs in fantastic shapes float on the deep blue sea.
Paradise Harbour is surrounded by heavily glaciated mountains and ice cliffs, which protect and shield this part of the bay and reflect in the ice-cold waters. Its mind-boggling array of icebergs are a highlight, enhancing the wildlife viewing experience which includes whales and abundant birdlife.
Isolated for thousands of years, this amazing wilderness off the BC coast is one of the most pristine areas left on earth – at the heart of the Great Bear Rainforest. In summer its wildlife is prolific, and whale watching excursions provides an ideal opportunity to learn about these marine mammals.
The South Shetland Islands are situated north of the Antarctic Peninsula. Most of the land is permanently glaciated, yet, despite the harsh conditions, the islands do support a large variety of seals, penguins – including Adelie and chinstrap - and seabirds – including Antarctic terns and giant petrels.
The area’s mountains, valleys and forests, extending up much of BC’s coastline, offer sanctuary to large numbers of grizzlies and black bear. No other mainland location offers such intimate wildlife encounters amidst breathtaking natural splendour. You can watch bears on foot or while drifting downriver.
Submarine volcanic activity caused this remarkable archipelago to rise from the seabed. Millions of years of isolation then allowed species to evolve through natural selection, creating a unique biological identity. There are no predators, so the animals know no fear – allowing close encounters.
This peaceful archipelago, 10 kilometres off the northern coast of Scotland, is a magical place of low-lying rocky islets, sandy beaches and blue seas – a great place to walk and see seabirds, birds of prey, whales and dolphins, along with fascinating prehistoric archaeological sites.
Although Baranof Island’s capital, Sitka, was the seat of the Russian administration and an important trading centre, it retains few traces of its past. Indigenous peoples had occupied Alaska for thousands of years, but in the 18th century European powers started to consider the region ripe for exploitation.
Chatham Strait is a deep 240 kilometre-long strait in the Alexander Archipelago, in southwest Alaska. It was once the home of explorers and fur-trappers, many of whom – in the days when Alaska was controlled by Russia rather than the United States – came from as far afield as Siberia, across the Bering Strait.
The sanctuary of Khutzeymateen comprises the land that surrounds the inlet of the same name on British Columbia’s north coast. This area, which was important to the First Nations peoples as a place for hunting and fishing, was the first habitat of the grizzly bear to be protected in Canada.
This inlet between the Haida Gwaii (a.k.a. Queen Charlotte Islands) and Dall Island, extends from Porcher Island north to Portland Inlet. Between 12 and 24 kilometres wide, it runs from Dundas Island in the west to the Tsimpsean Peninsula. The Skeena River joins it just south of Prince Rupert.
Accessed via the town of Cuiaba, the northern Pantanal is home to some of Brazil’s rarest wildlife, such as jaguar and giant river otter. Many of the lodges here are still functioning cattle ranches, offering day and night trips by boat, vehicle, on foot and on horseback, accompanied by local naturalist guides.
The Silver Bank lies approximately 110 kilometres north of the coast of the Dominican Republic, and almost the same distance southeast of the Turks and Caicos Islands, in the Antilles. In October 1986 the Dominican Republic recognized its vital importance by establishing the Silver Bank Sanctuary.
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