The Whale Trail: A Transboundary Approach to Eco-Tourism, Citizen Science, and Watching Whales

• Main Authors: Sandstrom, Donna, Purdy, Aaron, Scott, Jessica
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: Western CEDAR 2022
• Subjects: Orca
• Online Access: https://cedar.wwu.edu/ssec/2022ssec/allsessions/332; https://cedar.wwu.edu/context/ssec/article/3494/type/native/viewcontent/388_bc8487aa933c4481bc08b5fbab35c373.png

The Whale Trail is a series of places to watch orcas and other marine mammals from shore. In 2015 the Whale Trail expanded to British Columbia, through a partnership with the BC Cetacean Sighting Network. From 16 inaugural sites in 2008 there are now more than 130 along the west coast, from San Diego to Haida Gwai and throughout the Salish Sea. As the harmful impacts of noise on marine ecosystems become more clear, The Whale Trail has provided a new model for ecotourism that is inspiring similar efforts around the globe, and a new way to engage citizens in stewardship and orca recovery. Founder Donna Sandstrom and BC Whale Trail Lead Sarah Wilson will share successes, challenges, and the road ahead on The Whale Trail. Note: we have submitted this as a single shared talk but we could do separate talks which would allow deeper dives into each program.