Safety & Expertise

When we do something, we do it right.

A Coastline for Experts

Great tidal exchanges, narrow passages, strong currents, uncharted reefs and islands, few aids to navigation, huge distances, and fjords that rapidly ascend to mudflats: navigating the BC and southeast Alaska coast is for expert mariners.

Add to that the millions of hectares of watersheds in their natural state, populations in some areas of large carnivores (who are not out to harm humans but who, if threatened by humans who don’t understand them, may protect themselves), cold water and big weather, and you also need expert guides ashore.

swell-cascadia-and-maple-leaf-jeff-reynolds

Ship Safety & Maintenance

Our ships are professionally operated, Canadian-registered, expedition ships. They are certified by Transport Canada as passenger carrying vessels. Even our small shore boats are Transport Canada certified.

This is the highest level of certification for a commercial vessel in Canada. Canada’s requirements are more stringent than those of most countries in the world, and the amount of safety equipment and system redundancy on certified passenger vessels is orders of magnitude above what is typically found on private yachts.

The ships undergo scheduled, annual inspections by a series of Transport Canada inspectors. Our captains and first mates also perform daily inspections and planned maintenance during the operating season.

We have very high standards for equipment and maintenance. We buy the best equipment, and we maintain it in perfect condition.
Each ship has many redundant systems, emergency systems, first aid and lifesaving equipment, and communication methods.

Expert, Local Mariners

Our captains are very experienced on this coast.

In addition to being Transport Canada certified masters, they have many years of experience navigating ships here.

Our mates, engineers and other crew members also carry certification from Transport Canada.

Experienced Wilderness Guides

Our expedition leaders are exactly the kind of people you’d want to find yourself on a deserted island with.

Since you will find yourself on a deserted island with them (albeit with a ship anchored nearby), we hope you take great comfort from this.

They are capable outdoors-people, with decades of experience in coastal weather, geography, wildlife, wilderness living, and survival skills.

They are also genial leaders, able to give both wonder and confidence to their guests. Their certifications include advanced wilderness first aid for leaders, advanced bear guide training, CPR and other lifesaving skills, and years of training on how to work with guests on a Maple Leaf Adventures trip.

Our other crew/guides also have training in the coastal wilderness, first aid, bear guiding and working with guests.

Exploring the Coast Responsibly

Maple Leaf Adventures is a coast-owned and operated company.

We have qualified for and purchased all of the permits and special use permits required to operate in park systems, including the Gulf Islands National Park Reserve, the Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve, National Marine Conservation Area Reserve and Haida Heritage Site, the BC Parks system, and the Tongass National Forest.

We were also a proud pioneer and advocate in creating protocol agreements with First Nations communities in whose traditional territories we operate.

For decades we have held these economic and stewardship agreements. The agreements formally recognize the title and rights of Indigenous governments and their traditional territory. They include fees paid to local communities, enshrine our desire to work with cultural interpreters and other guides, and codify our shared stewardship principles. As a function of these working relationships, we meet and communicate with community leaders throughout the year.

Environmental Safety and Protection

As an eco-tourism company, protecting our environment is one of our top priorities.

We build no structures and leave no trace in the places we visit. We have many environmental protection systems aboard above and beyond those required by law.

We donate time and money to coastal conservation and sustainable economic development initiatives.

All of this means that our ships and their guests are welcomed all along the coast, in cities and villages, cultural sites and research outposts alike.

Health & Safety Policies

Our top priority is ensuring the safety and health of the Maple Leaf Adventures guests and crew, as well as respecting the coastal communities we operate in.

As a professional ecotourism company that has been operating in our coastal home for over thirty years, we make decisions with long-term thinking.

We do not require proof of covid-19 vaccination for trips in 2024. However, we encourage all guests to stay up to date on their health management, including vaccinations and boosters.

Crew will conduct a health screening at boarding time. This can include a symptom check, but does not necessarily include rapid testing unless a guest is visibly ill and showing symptoms of COVID-19.

A guest who is visibly sick with any communicable disease symptoms will isolate in their cabin (on Swell or Cascadia) or be evacuated if their condition or ship quarantine procedures require it. Visibly ill guests may not be able to board the sailing ship Maple Leaf as it features shared living areas. We strongly encourage you to purchase a good quality trip cancellation and interruption insurance policy.

As communicable disease policies and regulations change, we may update these policies as they will apply to your voyage.

Our policies have been developed in consultation with our medical consultant Dr Neil MacLean, Regional Medical Director with the Fraser Health and an authority on COVID and communicable diseases.

About Maple Leaf Adventures

Since 1986, we have offered eco-expeditions among the fjords and archipelagos of the BC and Alaska coastline, aboard luxury expedition yachts that are small enough to navigate its coves and narrow straits.

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