Glacier Bay
Today’s visit to Glacier Bay National Park started out with quite a bit of fog and mist. It made the park more mysterious and gave it an unobtainable feel. We had only glimpses of the base of the mountains and peeks at the rock walls that define this great waterway. After visiting the Marble Islands and viewing the numerous bird species and Steller sea lions hauled out, the Sea Bird moved north to Tidal Inlet. The outwash fan on the north side of Tidal Inlet at first revealed only a few eagles, but as we were about to exit the bay a large male brown bear ambled its way across the loose rock and young vegetation. He walked down a drainage only to be confronted on the beach by a large iceberg? No, it was the bow of our ship with dozens of curious onlookers clicking away with cameras. He gave a cursory look and continued foraging for his morning meal amongst the rocks and debris that littered the beach. The bay was beginning to reveal her secrets.
After lunch and making our way farther up bay we came to Johns Hopkins glacier. This grand river of ice was a perfect backdrop for a photo opportunity. All guests aboard have come to this expedition as a part of Princeton University charter. Everyone, including our 22 younger guests, made their way to the bow and with mists lifting and the ice and rock exposed, pictures were taken of the smiling faces on the enthused guests who have enjoyed their chance to get to know Alaska and one another.
Today’s visit to Glacier Bay National Park started out with quite a bit of fog and mist. It made the park more mysterious and gave it an unobtainable feel. We had only glimpses of the base of the mountains and peeks at the rock walls that define this great waterway. After visiting the Marble Islands and viewing the numerous bird species and Steller sea lions hauled out, the Sea Bird moved north to Tidal Inlet. The outwash fan on the north side of Tidal Inlet at first revealed only a few eagles, but as we were about to exit the bay a large male brown bear ambled its way across the loose rock and young vegetation. He walked down a drainage only to be confronted on the beach by a large iceberg? No, it was the bow of our ship with dozens of curious onlookers clicking away with cameras. He gave a cursory look and continued foraging for his morning meal amongst the rocks and debris that littered the beach. The bay was beginning to reveal her secrets.
After lunch and making our way farther up bay we came to Johns Hopkins glacier. This grand river of ice was a perfect backdrop for a photo opportunity. All guests aboard have come to this expedition as a part of Princeton University charter. Everyone, including our 22 younger guests, made their way to the bow and with mists lifting and the ice and rock exposed, pictures were taken of the smiling faces on the enthused guests who have enjoyed their chance to get to know Alaska and one another.
