Cascade Creek, Thomas Bay & Petersburg
What a great day for experiencing Southeast Alaska!
The morning began with a view of Baird Glacier; as we sailed toward our anchorage a low fog bank snuggled with the mirroresque waters of Thomas Bay while the haunting wail of loons floated in the motionless air. Today’s exploration of Cascade Creek offered us our first up-close view of Alaska’s temperate rainforest, the most extensive in the world. Here we were introduced to the immense majesty of the Sitka spruce and western hemlock, which occupies so much of this land and whose wide branching canopy dictates what can survive in their shady understory. There was also the opportunity to explore this area via kayak; with the tide out, the diversity of life which spends much of its time hidden below the murky glacial water was clearly visible.
Our afternoon began by our vessel’s skillful docking in the busy Petersburg harbor on Mitkof Island. With its history rooted in Norwegian culture the sense of a tight knit community is prevalent as we strolled the streets with their many gift shops and seafood markets. Later participants of the dock walk explored a variety of fishing vessels and their wide array of catches. From this quaint fishing community, one of the nation’s top producers, we obtained Dungeness crab as a succulent addition to a delightful dinner. The town’s location was selected because of its close proximity to LeConte Glacier, which many had the breathtaking pleasure of flightseeing over for the ultimate vantage point on this spectacularly clear day.
In contrast to the dense vegetation of the temperate rainforest, the bog walk offered a very different look at another prevalent ecosystem found in coastal Alaska. Dominated by peat moss, the bog or muskeg is a wetland with its stagnant water trapped near the surface by the hard pan ground below. This highly acidic environment has stunted the growth of trees but provides the perfect habitat for a flourishing assortment of specially adapted species, such as the round-leaved sundew. The hairs of this carnivorous plant are tipped with a sticky fluid that reflects the suns light in a rainbow of colors and also ensnares prey. This plant with its big appetite is under an inch in size and relies on the same insects that it uses for food to help pollinate its flowers.
Shortly after leaving the dock we were welcomed to sharing in the Lindblad tradition of ‘recap’ where we viewed the undersea dock life from a fish eye perspective by video, shot earlier using the splash cam. Heads were laid to rest in the enveloping plushness of well made beds with the anticipation of being graced by the late night mystical appearance of the moon shrouded in a total lunar eclipse. As day turned into night, the suns’ last rays strained over the auburn horizon, while behind us the full moon’s light kissed the vessel's wake as we sailed up Fredrick Sound to our next destination.
What a great day for experiencing Southeast Alaska!
The morning began with a view of Baird Glacier; as we sailed toward our anchorage a low fog bank snuggled with the mirroresque waters of Thomas Bay while the haunting wail of loons floated in the motionless air. Today’s exploration of Cascade Creek offered us our first up-close view of Alaska’s temperate rainforest, the most extensive in the world. Here we were introduced to the immense majesty of the Sitka spruce and western hemlock, which occupies so much of this land and whose wide branching canopy dictates what can survive in their shady understory. There was also the opportunity to explore this area via kayak; with the tide out, the diversity of life which spends much of its time hidden below the murky glacial water was clearly visible.
Our afternoon began by our vessel’s skillful docking in the busy Petersburg harbor on Mitkof Island. With its history rooted in Norwegian culture the sense of a tight knit community is prevalent as we strolled the streets with their many gift shops and seafood markets. Later participants of the dock walk explored a variety of fishing vessels and their wide array of catches. From this quaint fishing community, one of the nation’s top producers, we obtained Dungeness crab as a succulent addition to a delightful dinner. The town’s location was selected because of its close proximity to LeConte Glacier, which many had the breathtaking pleasure of flightseeing over for the ultimate vantage point on this spectacularly clear day.
In contrast to the dense vegetation of the temperate rainforest, the bog walk offered a very different look at another prevalent ecosystem found in coastal Alaska. Dominated by peat moss, the bog or muskeg is a wetland with its stagnant water trapped near the surface by the hard pan ground below. This highly acidic environment has stunted the growth of trees but provides the perfect habitat for a flourishing assortment of specially adapted species, such as the round-leaved sundew. The hairs of this carnivorous plant are tipped with a sticky fluid that reflects the suns light in a rainbow of colors and also ensnares prey. This plant with its big appetite is under an inch in size and relies on the same insects that it uses for food to help pollinate its flowers.
Shortly after leaving the dock we were welcomed to sharing in the Lindblad tradition of ‘recap’ where we viewed the undersea dock life from a fish eye perspective by video, shot earlier using the splash cam. Heads were laid to rest in the enveloping plushness of well made beds with the anticipation of being graced by the late night mystical appearance of the moon shrouded in a total lunar eclipse. As day turned into night, the suns’ last rays strained over the auburn horizon, while behind us the full moon’s light kissed the vessel's wake as we sailed up Fredrick Sound to our next destination.
