28 Jun 2012

Homage to a Great Explorer

No voyage entitled 'In the Wake of Bering' would be complete without a visit to the gravesite of the great explorer Vitus Bering. He lies on a remote beach on the NE coast of the island named for him in the Commander Islands group. Bering led two expeditions to the north Pacific, on the first sailing through the Bering Strait and on the second discovering Alaska. The name Bering and that of his naturalist Steller, is synonymous with the region. The Commander Islands are now a nature reserve with abundant wildlife. We enjoyed close encounters with Sea Otters, Northern Fur Seals and Steller Sea Lions in the shadow of towering bird cliffs.