“And so we arrive in Glacier Bay, a land reborn, a world returning to life, a living lesson in resilience. If ever we needed a place to intrigue and inspire us, to help us see all that’s possible in nature and in ourselves, this is it.”
With these words by Kim Heacox in the park’s brochure, Park Ranger Caiti Campbell welcomed us to Glacier Bay National Park: a World Heritage Site and a Biosphere Reserve. Caiti is walking sunshine and her reverence and knowledge of Glacier Bay was evident with every story she told on this gorgeous day. And yet another heartfelt greeting awaited us, this time in the Tlingit language. Our cultural interpreter Ranelle offered us a welcome in her native tongue. It didn’t take long for us to see why they hold this landscape in such high regard.
Even before our morning brunch, we had already seen the tufted puffins of South Marble Island, a mama brown bear dining on the beach with her tiny dark cub (probably born in February), and the ever-steady mountain goats of Gloomy Knob. (All of this before breakfast!)
Our ranger explained that the month of July didn’t offer a single full day of sunshine, yet today, not only was there abundant blue skies, but the highest mountain in the 3.3 million-acre park, Mount Fairweather was in full view at an impressive 15,320 feet. (All of this before the first iceberg!)
At noon, we spied our first tidewater glacier in the distance (Reid), and shortly after, we were just ½ mile from Lamplugh Glacier where a small group of hikers gave us some perspective. Either those intrepid adventures at the base of the glacier were as tiny as our fingertips or that glacier was LARGER than we imagined. It was the latter! At over 150 feet tall (think of a 15-story building), Lamplugh was more than blue, it was huge, and Johns Hopkins Glacier was even taller! Now all that awaited was some quality time ¼ of a mile from the face of Margerie Glacier. The abundant icebergs in Tarr Inlet were testament to a very active river of ice. “Calving” is the term used to describe the action when ice breaks from the glacier face and cascades into the ocean below, and “White Thunder” describes the sound. In short sleeves and sunglasses, we experienced both.
The sheer grandeur was evident on this picture-perfect day. But don’t take my word for it: a quick interview of some of our shipmates as we were departing Margerie Glacier was insightful. In a word...
“Dynamic, thunderous, awe-inspiring, primordial, sobering, magnificent, serene, awesome and soul-touching.”
In the afternoon our amazing Head Chef Michelle whipped up a yummy batch of buffalo chicken wings on the BBQ, that seemingly appeared out of nowhere on the sundeck. Since our morning brunch was hours before, we were ready for this delicious diversion. And our cultural interpreter favored us with some insights about the Tlingit people who have called Glacier Bay their homeland since “time immemorial.” What an incredible day! Last year the National Park Service celebrated their 100-year anniversary with the slogan, “Find Your Park.” Today, we found ours! And once again we are thankful for those who saved these wild lands for the next generation. And thanks Ranger Caiti for sharing your passion and stories.
