There is no such thing as a typical schedule aboard an expedition ship; almost by definition it is a constantly evolving itinerary that is subject to change. There is always a plan, but it is a plan to deviate from the moment the unplanned, sometimes literally, appears on the horizon. Today was a day that couldn’t have been imagined, let alone planned, and there is no doubt in anyone’s mind that we are truly on an expedition.
A mother bear and a pair of “roly-poly” cubs in the morning mist before breakfast gave way to almost a dozen huge humpback whales cooperatively feeding as a group. This behavior is utterly unique to this area and even more specifically to these massive individuals that encircle an entire school of herring in what is known as a bubble net. These 45-foot-long mammals will work together and actively blow bubbles beneath the fish that then rises upwards, creating a barrier of air that the fish won’t pass through. Once the net has been “cast” the whales will converge on the tightly packed ball of fish from below with their huge mouths agape, trapping their prey against the surface. This coordinated underwater ballet comes to a crashing crescendo when these cetaceans almost fully erupt from the water in a surge of blubber and frothing white water. This display of highly intelligent predation continued for almost two mesmerizing hours before finally we made our way to Pavlof Harbor for the start of the day’s outlined activities.
Boots were donned, rain gear zipped up and everyone was shuttled to shore where sturdy kayaks and forest trails awaited. Confident that they couldn’t get wetter, the Undersea Program divers plunged into the vibrant depths to bring back video evidence of the wonders below. Back on the less-than-dry land the wildlife once again had other intentions than the ones we had devised and as there were a pair of yearling brown bears fishing at the falls, happily cutting short some of the hikes. It was so captivating to watch them romp around in the shallows, salmon clenched in strong teeth, that one almost didn’t realize it had even stopped raining, right on schedule but not the one that was written. We can only hope that our best-laid plans are often set awry by bears and whales.
