Williams Cove and Tracy Arm
When traveling amidst terrain made for giants, it is easy to lose perspective. Williams Cove, rising out of the water like a massive amphitheater, surrounds the ship. Thousands of spruces and hemlocks sit stoically waiting for the act to start, an arboreal audience of penetrating green. Nunataks, the stubborn surviving mountaintops of a glacial onslaught, top the ridges like ushers.
The watching wilderness is treated to the logistical ballet of the morning activities. Kayaks and Zodiacs flit to and from the ship and shore, allowing for all manner of exploration. A black bear is observed by kayakers, who are comfortably safe paddling offshore, while wolf tracks are seen by the hikers. After an exhausting but exhilarating performance the show comes to and end and all the players return to the trusty National Geographic Sea Bird and heave anchor for a change of scenery and a new metaphorical vehicle to attempt to translate such a unique experience into something we can begin to process.
Seeing this environment as an organism comes easily, each component becomes an organ. South Sawyer Glacier, like a colossal frozen heart, calves sheets of white and blue as a heart would pump and beat. The icebergs of infinite blue drift down the turquoise infused artery of Tracy Arm, evoking an unavoidable sensation of grandeur.
This seemingly unbeatable view is almost immediately surpassed the moment one steps into a Zodiac. Being so close to the water, feeling the sharp katabatic wind blowing off the glacier, and getting ever closer to the cerulean wall of ice that simultaneously seems both alive and dead, invokes a powerful sense of awe. The Arctic terns joyfully wheel about as we creep as close as discretion allows and it isn’t just the freezing temperature that leaves us speechless. Just giving in to the visual treat allows for a comfortable silence, disturbed only by the throaty purr of the Zodiac engine and the polite clicking of camera shutters.
The last full day having certainly been full, we make our way back to our ship with its waiting warm drinks and cozy cabins, certain that the sights seen today will persist in daydreams and memories for a long time to come.
