This morning we woke up to see the first light of Southeast Alaska. Misty Fjords National Monument is where we spent our day cruising between majestic monoliths through glass-calm waters. We scanned with our binoculars the distant ice-carved mountains in search of mountain goats. The weather could not have been better; blue skies with cumulus clouds and the entire landscape for us and no one else.
Since we had entered back into the U.S., we went through immigration in a most unusual way. Here in the remoteness of the Alaskan Fjords, Customs and Immigration officers come to us by floatplane. It was quite spectacular to see the aircraft landing on the water and taking off after they were done.
We spent the afternoon kayaking near seemingly endless waterfalls and forests. Aboard our expedition landing craft we cruised to take a better look into the remote corners of the fjord. We learned about geology, forest ecology, and glacial history of the area.
The snow still covers the mountaintops, and the scenery could not be more beautiful. Under this setting, we were fortunate to leisurely stop to observe birds, ice-scraped rocks, and some birds like harlequin ducks and Barrow’s goldeneyes.
To end the day, we shared some underwater video that brought to the surface images of cryptic and unknown creatures for most of us. The 45 degree Fahrenheit water started out as purely fresh water, mostly from snow melt. This column of fresh to brackish water went as deep as 25 feet, which is quite unusual. Giant sponges, echinoderms, and other alien-looking creatures of the dark became known to us through the magic of modern technology.
