Prince Rupert now makes for a destination on the " West Coast Whale Trail"

Prince Rupert's Cow Bay Breakwater is a new destination for the
West Coast Whale Trail

There's a new mark on the map that charts the available viewing locations to follow the path of marine mammals along the West Coast, with Prince Rupert now the latest stop as part of a shore based marine Mammal viewing initiative known as the "West Coast Whale Trail"

New signage and viewing binoculars have been installed at the Cow Bay Dock area with a public viewing area now assigned to the City's public breakwater, identifying Cow Bay as the latest addition to the Whale Trail. The new signs and binoculars were provided through funding from the Vancouver Aquarium Marine Science Centre, Prince Rupert LNG and the Port of Prince Rupert.

Caitlin Birdsall, coordinator of the North Coast Cetacean Research Initiative through the Vancouver Aquarium,  has served as the coordinator  for for the addition of the breakwater as a “Whale Trail” stop along with the City’s Marina staff.

“Prince Rupert’s breakwater provides an ideal viewing site for The Whale Trail, and its accessibility will help us in our efforts to engage citizen scientists to learn about and collect data on cetaceans,”

Birdsall also observed as to how the new site will help to engage residents with marine line, noting that "as well as information about local species, the new signage encourages people to report their marine mammal sightings for conservation-based research."

Prince Rupert will soon be the next mark
on the West Coast Whale Trail Map,
as the North Coast joins the list of optimum
viewing locations for marine mammals

There are over a half dozen species of marine mammals that could be observed at different times of the year from the Cow Bay dock, including Sea lions, Harbour seals, Humpback whales, Killer whales and both Harbour and Dali's porpoises.

Descriptions of each species are available on each sign and the names have been translated into Sm'algyax the language of the Ts'msyen people, that translation was provided by the regions Sm'algyax Language Authority Committee.

The project was one that caught the attention of the Prince Rupert Port Authority and meshes well with their program to reduce the impact of industry on the North Coast on the whale population.

Jason Scherr, the Sustainability Manager for the Port of Prince Rupert Port outlined some of the key elements of the program.

“Improving our understanding of the marine mammals that transit Canada’s west coast waters is an effort we’re proud to support in partnership with agencies like the Vancouver Aquarium,” ...  “Our marine mammal program is helping port industries minimize our impact on whales and other species. It’s our hope that joining the Whale Trail will encourage more residents and visitors to Prince Rupert to contribute to the Cetacean Sightings Network.”

More background related to the Whale Trail can be explored from the project website here, with an update no doubt destined for their map of the West Coast.

Further details on the Prince Rupert stop on the trail can be reviewed from this information piece provided through the Port of Prince Rupert, Vancouver Aquarium and City of Prince Rupert.

More notes related to the tourism industry in Prince Rupert can be found on our archive page here.