Tracy Arm, Alaska
The Sea Bird plied the glassy calm waters of Stephens Passage early on the morning of June 19th and arrived in Holkham Bay about 7am. The Sea Bird turned north into Williams Cove where we anchored as the sun beat down on a third exceptionally hot day. After breakfast we divided into groups for hikes to a small set of beaver ponds, along a coastal forest trail, or kayaking in the cove. We boarded the Sea Bird for lunch and then pulled up the anchor for our journey east, up the long and sinuous glacially carved valley, or fiord, of Tracy Arm. The afternoon was punctuated with incredible views of glacially carved rock forms (including U-shaped valleys, glacial horns, and striations) and geologic evidence for the tectonic forces that caused growth of the Coast Mountains between 90 and 60 million years before present. By 4 pm, the Sea Bird was in front of the spectacular face of Sawyer Glacier at the eastern terminus of Tracy Arm. The ice shone brilliantly in the sun showing the dark blue color, characteristic of clean coarsely crystalline glacial ice near the water and white, less smooth surfaces higher up the cliff of ice. Although there was only minor calving while we watched, the bare rock surfaces in front of the glacier provided testimony to the recent rapid retreat of the glacier. These surfaces of metamorphic and igneous rock provided evidence of formation deep within the crust of the Earth. We pondered the black and white swirl of migmatite or mixed igneous and metamorphic rock, formed as rocks were heated to temperatures that caused partial melting deep in the Earth’s crust. Around 5 pm, the Sea Bird turned toward the ice-choked water in front of South Sawyer glacier. We were treated to excellent views of Harbor Seals on the icebergs as we worked our way toward the calving ice. Tracy Arm was bathed in sun, as we traveled west out of the fiord during dinner, and the Sea Bird anchored near Wood Spit for the evening. The sun slipped down behind the mountains and Mt. Sumdum was bathed in Alpenglow as we prepared for sleep. Early in the morning, the Sea Bird lifted anchor and turned north down Stephens Passage toward Juneau.
The Sea Bird plied the glassy calm waters of Stephens Passage early on the morning of June 19th and arrived in Holkham Bay about 7am. The Sea Bird turned north into Williams Cove where we anchored as the sun beat down on a third exceptionally hot day. After breakfast we divided into groups for hikes to a small set of beaver ponds, along a coastal forest trail, or kayaking in the cove. We boarded the Sea Bird for lunch and then pulled up the anchor for our journey east, up the long and sinuous glacially carved valley, or fiord, of Tracy Arm. The afternoon was punctuated with incredible views of glacially carved rock forms (including U-shaped valleys, glacial horns, and striations) and geologic evidence for the tectonic forces that caused growth of the Coast Mountains between 90 and 60 million years before present. By 4 pm, the Sea Bird was in front of the spectacular face of Sawyer Glacier at the eastern terminus of Tracy Arm. The ice shone brilliantly in the sun showing the dark blue color, characteristic of clean coarsely crystalline glacial ice near the water and white, less smooth surfaces higher up the cliff of ice. Although there was only minor calving while we watched, the bare rock surfaces in front of the glacier provided testimony to the recent rapid retreat of the glacier. These surfaces of metamorphic and igneous rock provided evidence of formation deep within the crust of the Earth. We pondered the black and white swirl of migmatite or mixed igneous and metamorphic rock, formed as rocks were heated to temperatures that caused partial melting deep in the Earth’s crust. Around 5 pm, the Sea Bird turned toward the ice-choked water in front of South Sawyer glacier. We were treated to excellent views of Harbor Seals on the icebergs as we worked our way toward the calving ice. Tracy Arm was bathed in sun, as we traveled west out of the fiord during dinner, and the Sea Bird anchored near Wood Spit for the evening. The sun slipped down behind the mountains and Mt. Sumdum was bathed in Alpenglow as we prepared for sleep. Early in the morning, the Sea Bird lifted anchor and turned north down Stephens Passage toward Juneau.
