Spring Bird Migration Cruises Offered by PTMSC
For Immediate Release – April 4, 2008
Contact: Christina Pivarnik, Marketing
Port Townsend Marine Science Center
360.531.0127 or christina@pivarnik.com
or cruises@ptmsc.org
The Port Townsend Marine Science Center (PTMSC) invites you to come and view the spring bird migration aboard Puget Sound Express’ Glacier Spirit, a comfortably enclosed motor yacht, beginning Saturday, April 12th and running consecutively for the following three Saturdays. The three-hour trips are scheduled from 1 – 4 p.m. on April 12th, 19th, 26th and May 3rd, departing from Hudson Point Marina in downtown Port Townsend.
“For 15 years we’ve featured Protection Island as the primary destination for our science cruises,” said Anne Murphy, Executive Director for the PTMSC. “This year we’ve decided to explore other parts of Central Puget Sound to discover more birds in different and varied niches, including shell beaches and gravel splits, tidal channels and natural harbors, as well as rocky points and wide meadows of eel grass.”
As exotic as Protection Island seems, with its puffins and elephant seals, semi-desert and dry forest landscapes, so too is it less typical of the more intimate and less familiar inshore world we only glimpse dimply through the ferry window, Roger Risley added, PTMSC’s naturalist.
“By ‘intimate’ we mean that inseparable piece of wilderness each wild bird brings to the places it finds food and refuge. It’s the place most of us live whether we realize it or not. It’s the wilderness all around us that we need to recognize in order to sustain its viability,” Risley continued.
So this spring, the PTMSC bird migration cruises will expand their itinerary to include more points east, looking for excuses like gales in the forecast and a quest for adventure, to offer patrons a broader view of the local marine environment.
Tickets are $55 per person ($50 for members of the PTMSC, Burke Museum, Audubon or the Washington Ornithological Society). On-board refreshments are available. For reservations, please call the Port Townsend Marine Science Center at 360.385.5582 ext. 104 or 800.566.3932 or e-mail at cruises@ptmsc.org for additional information.
The Port Townsend Marine Science Center is devoted to understanding, preserving and teaching about our marine and shoreline environment as guardians for a sustainable future. Located on the beach at Fort Worden State Park, the PTMSC offers two public exhibits: the Marine Exhibit (ME) features large touch pools and aquaria, and the Natural History Exhibit (NHE) highlights the rich zone where land meets sea. Both exhibits are open Friday, Saturday and Sunday from noon to 4 p.m. Admission is $5 for adults, $3 for youth and free to PTMSC members. The PTMSC also offers a wide variety of educational programs and special events. For more information, call 360.385.5582, e-mail info@ptmsc.org or visit www.ptmsc.org