Where else but in Alaska can you wake up and the first thing you see is a pod of killer whales? The voice of my roommate calling my name made me realize that something was worth getting up for, and I was right. I had hardly finished rubbing the sleep from my eyes when the first two killer whales surface not yards from the side of the National Geographic Sea Lion. I was grateful the patchy fog cushioned my eyes from the bright sun and the next thing I knew I was clicking away on my camera making image after image of killer whales escorting the ship. By breakfast, we had already experience what to most would have been a full day.
After breakfast, we headed to shore to participate in various walks offered by the naturalist staff at Ideal Cove. When we arrived we got the opportunity to truly understand the meaning of “love your boots”, the constant refrain from all of the staff about what footwear we would need on most of our excursions. Right now, we are experiencing extreme tides, and the exposed mud of low tide embraced out feet in a sludge that did not want to let go when we tried to lift a foot. All part of the experience and one we could all joke about later. It was a perfect Alaskan morning to hike in the woods. A thick fog surrounded us on our arrival, but as we ventured into the woods, it lifted to expose a beautiful and wondrous place. Thick moss and lichens covered trunks and branches of ancient trees and forest floor. It is magical to walk among the woods of this temperate rainforest, and the information our naturalist impart to us makes the experience something all the more fulfilling.
After lunch, we sailed into Petersburg Harbor and found ourselves nested between fishing vessels of all sorts. Something we would learn more about on a walk among the boats, that is, if you decided to participate on one of the dock walks offered by our undersea specialist. If not, you may have travelled across the bay to walk to a bog where you had the chance to walk along a boardwalk through a bog filled with the most interesting plants, specially adapted to exist in this most demanding environment. The carnivorous plants are always the most interesting. I lead a mock photo assignment where we tried to replicate the experience of working on a photo assignment to tell the story of Petersburg in images. Petersburg has so much to offer, even if you decided to forgo any of the organized walks and simply wonder through town to explore the local culture on your own.
On most days, this would have been enough to fill our day, but on our visit to Petersburg even our dinner is something of an Alaskan experience, all you can eat crab night. A tradition on board for years, our chef procures fresh Dungeness crab caught by local fishermen and cooks it to perfection for our palette to enjoy. Today is a day filled from dawn to dusk with excitement and personal gratification.
