Glacier Bay National Park
Glacier Day Bay day always requires an early start to maximize the time available in this ultimately special ecosystem and today was no exception. We stopped at Bartlett Cove to pick up Ranger Emma Johnson and Tlingit Cultural Interpreter Bertha Franulovich, and started our adventure at six o’clock.
As National Geographic Sea Bird steamed up the bay, South Marble Island brought the sights, sounds and smells of Steller’s (northern) sea lions and many different bird species, including tufted puffins, glaucous-winged gulls, black-legged kittiwakes, common murres, black oystercatchers and cormorants. Steller’s sea lions were abundant here and many sea otters, which are making a great come-back in the protected waters of the national park, were also spotted.
The warm spring here in Southeast Alaska brought out a phenomenal display of life on the hoof; we spotted nearly a dozen mountain goats, including several nannies with kids, between Tlingit Point and Gloomy Knob. We also spotted several brown bears that were clearly stalking some of the goats but couldn’t keep up in the steep vertical terrain. Advantage goats!
Further up the bay, closing in on the glaciers, we passed through a narrow channel called the Russell Cut, where we were treated to brown bears engaged in a very ‘highly intense social activity’ designed to help propagate the species. Glad to report that nature abounds and life persists; we’ll be looking for new cubs next spring!
The chunks of icy bits and bergs started to get thicker on the milky water’s surface. We knew that we were getting closer to the side-by-side glaciers of Margerie and Grand Pacific. The faceless giants stared back at us as we intently watched and waited for a significant calving event. While the immense scale of everything here makes it difficult to comprehend its true enormity, the glacier was relatively quiet today.
Enroute back to Bartlett Cove, we spotted a humpback whale looking for dinner in the nutrient rich waters of the bay, while we enjoyed ours. This was clear evidence that we were getting closer to the waterways of the Inside Passage and the continuation of our voyage of exploration.
