We awoke this morning to a glorious day of sunshine, surrounded by snowcapped peaks rising dramatically skyward. Strong tidal currents dragged the marker buoys underwater, the only sign of nature’s challenge to our passage as we began our navigation here in Glacier Bay. A massive cruise ship sailed past us, momentarily obliterating the scenic mountain views. How wonderful it was for us to be here on National Geographic Sea Lion, lining the bow railings with our feet a mere 14 feet above the waterline. We had an intimate feeling of connection to this wilderness.
Today was a terrific mix of elements which began with the pleasure of sailing up Glacier Bay on a sunny, warm day, the temperature peaking at over 72 degrees by late afternoon. It was hard not to be out on deck, looking for wildlife, and just appreciating the immense scenery that surrounded us along the way. Just after breakfast we arrived at South Marble Island where we had views of Steller sea lions, along with a wonderful variety of seabirds. The stars of the show were the many tufted puffins, but all the birds were great to see – pigeon guillemots, black-legged kittiwakes, glaucous-winged gulls, pelagic cormorants, common murres, black oystercatchers, murrelets, and bald eagles. Between our various stops, we learned more about the region with presentations by Andrea Markell, our Glacier Bay park ranger, on birds and the background of Glacier Bay National Park, and then by Alice Xeishge, our cultural heritage guide from the Huna community, speaking to us about “Our Tlingit Way of Life.”
At Gloomy Knob, which was anything but gloomy today, we had the pleasure of watching four pairs of mountain goats with their tiny kids. It was amazing to watch as these youngsters easily navigated up, down, and across the steep, rocky slopes, and even down to the intertidal area. We continued on north through the narrow passage at Russell Island and after lunch we arrived at the most northerly point of Glacier Bay, at the two faces of Margerie Glacier and Grand Pacific Glacier. The contrast between the two is striking: Margerie bright and blue, while the Grand Pacific is blackened by glacial moraine. We had a great spot in front of Margerie, with clear views looking far back into the Fairweather Range, and saw some nice bits of calving before it was time to turn back south.
As we continued our journey, we poked our heads into Johns Hopkins Inlet to view Lamplugh Glacier. A bit later in the afternoon, after much time spent appreciating and photographing the geologic and glacial features of the area, Eric Guth gave us his beautifully photo-illustrated presentation, “Where Ice Meets Rock, A Geologic Love Story,” a subject he is clearly passionate about. Our day would not have been complete without a bear sighting, which we found on the edge of a beautifully forested bay at Geikie Inlet. We ended our day at Bartlett Cove with walks and a visit to the Glacier Bay Lodge.
