After spending the night in Peril Strait, at the extreme southern end of Chichagof Island, we awoke this morning over 60 miles to the north, on the opposite end of Chichagof. The Inian Islands were our morning destination and proved as noteworthy as they were billed. Expedition landing craft cruises led us amongst a rugged band of islands at the border of the open Pacific Ocean and the southern extent of Glacier Bay National Park. Past roaring Steller sea lions hauled out on tiny weathered rocks, to frenzied flocks of gulls and cormorants feasting on tight balls of baitfish, this area’s productivity is linked with the strong tidal currents that funnel from west to east. As the Pacific Ocean moves massive amounts of water through the narrow waterways dividing the Inian Islands, it also concentrates food and enough stunning scenery to last a lifetime. This, however, was just the start to our day.
During lunch we motored south to set our feet on solid ground for the first time this trip. Fox Creek is at the northern tip of Chichagof Island and provided a perfect introduction to the temperate rain forest which makes this place so unique. Pink salmon filled the streams, bear trails guided us beneath the canopy, and a clearing sky added a welcomed contrast to the wind and rain that ushered us into Alaska just yesterday. Whether kayaking in the calm, reflective waters near Fox Creek or taking in the subtleties of the forest, this is what people come to Alaska for—a mix of sea and forest so closely intertwined that one blends into the next.
With such fine weather at our disposal, cocktail hour was held on the outer decks as we navigated east towards the entrance of Glacier Bay National Park. To our port side loomed the 15,000ft peaks of the Fairweather range, the icy epicenter of the large tidewater glaciers we are bound for tomorrow. This was my first glimpse of those massive summits in two years—a sight that could only be matched by what else? A pod of pre-dinner killer whales swimming through the dappled waters of Icy Strait on a warm Alaskan evening.
