In-Person Guided Tour
The St. Roch and North Star of Hercshel Island were involved in the Arctic sovereignty efforts around WWI. The St. Roch is a national historic site and a permanent exhibition at the Vancouver Maritime Museum. North Star of Herschel Island is one of the residents at Heritage Harbour.
On Saturday, July 10 at 11:30 a.m. you can take a special guided tour and learn about these two incredible Arctic vessels. During the one-hour tour you will:
- learn about these two historic treasures
- meet the captain of the North Star
- take part in an interactive drawing lesson
The St. Roch was built in 1928. It was the first vessel to make the west-east traverse of the Northwest Passage and the first to circumnavigate North America via the Panama Canal. It was also the first vessel to travel in both directions through the Northwest Passage.
North Star of Herschel Island is the last of the sailing Arctic fur trading ships and the only fully rigged ship in Canada. A fully rigged ship has square sails on each of her three masts. North Star often worked in the Beaufort Sea at the same time as the St. Roch. The captain of North Star of Hercshel Island, Bruce Macdonald, will tell you all about the boat’s history, and he’ll probably share some stories about people in the Arctic.
Bruce Macdonald is the author of North Star of Herschel Island, the definitive guide to this important vessel. He has also written Sisters of the Ice, a book about the contributions the St. Roch and North Star made to Canadian Arctic sovereignty.
Tickets for this tour include free admission to the Vancouver Maritime Museum on Saturday July 10. You are welcome to take advantage of your free museum visit before or after the tour. Please arrive a minimum of 15 minutes before the tour start time. This program is family-friendly.
Cost:
Adults: $13.50
Seniors/students: $11.00
Youth (ages 6-18): $10
Children 5 and under: Free
UPDATE: This tour is now fully booked. We hope to hold another one. If you’d like to be the first to register for the next tour, please sign up for the waitlist.