Glacier Bay National Park
Early this morning the National Geographic Sea Bird entered Glacier Bay. We made a quick stop at Bartlett Cove to pick up our ranger/guide, Kevin Richards. Shortly after breakfast we cruised near South Marble Island, a glacially carved, rounded protrusion of dolomite in the middle of the bay. Here, a profusion of life beaconed us outside despite the cold and the rain. Hundreds of sea birds called to one another. Flocks of black-legged kittiwakes flew down from their precarious nests ingeniously affixed to the rock with mud, grasses and seaweed. Tufted puffins, common murres and marbled murrelets also graced us with their presence as they lazily awaited our passage before taking flight. We also witnessed large groups of sea lions letting gravity carry them down into the water one right after another like dominoes. Not only is this a popular nesting site for many sea birds, it is also a haul out for Steller’s sea lions.
Late morning we continued to follow the coastline in search of wildlife. Passing a rocky face called Gloomy Knob, we scanned for mountain goats. At the head of a high waterfall, a white dot was spotted, however, few of us could positively identify it as a goat. Fortunately, two more came into view at a much lower elevation. The pair carefully made their way down a rock fall. Just before lunch, the sighting of a brown bear on the tide flats opposite Russell Island drew us outside again . It prodded along a thicket of alders and grazed on sedges with no concern for the rain. In scanning the shoreline, two more were spotted. One disappeared into the shrubbery and the other lingered in the intertidal zone turning over stones, extracting flesh from broken barnacles and mussels and dipping down to slurp up tide pool sculpins. Glaucous-winged gulls and black oystercatchers followed in pursuit of any food leftover by the bear.
Our final destination before turning around was the magnificent Johns Hopkins Glacier. As if to further mark this as the highlight of our journey into Glacier Bay the clouds lifted revealing the peaks freshly dusted in snow.
After dinner, we pulled into dock at Bartlett Cove to drop off Kevin and to spend the evening hours near the Glacier Bay Lodge and the surrounding forest. Many of us hiked a loop trail around two kettle ponds, a peaceful refuge and wonderful spot to explore the temperate rain forest. Though rainy, today proved to be fruitful and fun-filled.
Early this morning the National Geographic Sea Bird entered Glacier Bay. We made a quick stop at Bartlett Cove to pick up our ranger/guide, Kevin Richards. Shortly after breakfast we cruised near South Marble Island, a glacially carved, rounded protrusion of dolomite in the middle of the bay. Here, a profusion of life beaconed us outside despite the cold and the rain. Hundreds of sea birds called to one another. Flocks of black-legged kittiwakes flew down from their precarious nests ingeniously affixed to the rock with mud, grasses and seaweed. Tufted puffins, common murres and marbled murrelets also graced us with their presence as they lazily awaited our passage before taking flight. We also witnessed large groups of sea lions letting gravity carry them down into the water one right after another like dominoes. Not only is this a popular nesting site for many sea birds, it is also a haul out for Steller’s sea lions.
Late morning we continued to follow the coastline in search of wildlife. Passing a rocky face called Gloomy Knob, we scanned for mountain goats. At the head of a high waterfall, a white dot was spotted, however, few of us could positively identify it as a goat. Fortunately, two more came into view at a much lower elevation. The pair carefully made their way down a rock fall. Just before lunch, the sighting of a brown bear on the tide flats opposite Russell Island drew us outside again . It prodded along a thicket of alders and grazed on sedges with no concern for the rain. In scanning the shoreline, two more were spotted. One disappeared into the shrubbery and the other lingered in the intertidal zone turning over stones, extracting flesh from broken barnacles and mussels and dipping down to slurp up tide pool sculpins. Glaucous-winged gulls and black oystercatchers followed in pursuit of any food leftover by the bear.
Our final destination before turning around was the magnificent Johns Hopkins Glacier. As if to further mark this as the highlight of our journey into Glacier Bay the clouds lifted revealing the peaks freshly dusted in snow.
After dinner, we pulled into dock at Bartlett Cove to drop off Kevin and to spend the evening hours near the Glacier Bay Lodge and the surrounding forest. Many of us hiked a loop trail around two kettle ponds, a peaceful refuge and wonderful spot to explore the temperate rain forest. Though rainy, today proved to be fruitful and fun-filled.
