Today was our first full day on board the National Geographic Sea Lion and we couldn’t have asked for better conditions. We woke up to a spectacular sunrise as we sailed towards our morning destination of De Groff Bay where we were able to offer kayaking and hiking. The hiking was completely exploratory as many of the naturalists and staff had never been to this location before, so we had a great time discovering unchartered terrain. We found signs of bear (in the form of scat), learned about the plants of the forest, and saw several species of birds. We also dropped the kayaks in the water and had a fantastic time paddling around the bay. The weather was perfect, the sun was shining, the water was calm, and the birds were chirping. All in all it was an outstanding morning!
After lunch, we made a transit through Sergius Narrows and Peril Straight as headed towards Chatham Strait, which is a large fjord that separates Admiralty Island from Baranof and Chichagof Islands. During our afternoon cruise, all naturalists were on deck with binoculars in hand searching for any signs of wildlife. We spotted a single humpback whale lunge feeding as we were entering Sergius Narrows, our first large mammal spotting of the trip! These massive animals usually feed on krill or small fish, and judging by the whales’ behavior it was evident that the waters were rich with food as it continuously lunged towards the surface with its mouth wide open.
After leaving the whale sighting, we continued on through Sergius Narrows which is a very narrow and difficult to navigate location that can only be traversed during slack tide due to the raging currents. After a safe crossing, we continued towards our anchorage tonight which strategically puts us in position near Pond Island. We enjoyed another delicious dinner on board and watched as the sun set over the distant Alaskan horizon. A beautiful first day here in Southeast Alaska, and we look forward to what the rest of the week has to offer!
