It was a busy and adventurous day aboard National Geographic Sea Bird. The early morning found us entering the gaping mouth of Endicott Arm, a large, glacier-carved fjord located within the Tracy Arm-Fords Terror Wilderness. After breakfast, kayaking and stand-up paddleboarding were on the agenda, and in the afternoon, we enjoyed amazing small-boat cruises though the bergy bit-strewn waters of the fjord. The sound of “white thunder” echoed off the rock faces as we watched impressive chunks of ice calving from the 250-foot-high face of Dawes Glacier. Around sunset, we cruised out of the fjord and toasted our memorable week, discovering the miracles of Southeast Alaska.
9/10/2024
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National Geographic Sea Lion
Pavlof Harbor
The day started with an exciting encounter. Before breakfast we observed a group of bubble-netting humpback whales. It was incredible to see them lunge and hear them breathing at the surface. This was coupled by a glorious pink sunrise. After breakfast we took Zodiac cruises searching for bears near Pavlof Harbor. Even though we did not find any (wildlife is always delightfully unexpected), the scenery was beautiful, and we watched many adorable harbor seals. After thinking the excitement of the day was done, we spotted a large group of whales from a distance. While approaching closer, we realized this group was also bubble-net feeding. Close to the shore, we observed these whales for hours. We even dropped the hydrophone to hear their haunting feeding call before they all lunged at the surface. It was one of the most incredible things any of us had ever witnessed. As if this wasn’t enough, at our sunset recap we got the call that there were killer whales around the ship. It was the most amazing ending to the most amazing day.
