The
Inside Passage is a coastal route for oceangoing vessels along a network of passages which weave through the islands on the
Pacific coast of North America. The route extends from southeastern
Alaska, in the
United States, through western
British Columbia, in
Canada, to northwestern
Washington state, in the United States. Ships using the route can avoid some of the bad weather in the open ocean and may visit some of the many isolated communities along the route. The Inside Passage is heavily travelled by cruise ships, freighters, tugs with tows, fishing craft and ships of the
Alaska Marine Highway,
BC Ferries, and
Washington State Ferries systems.