We had a beautiful, bluebird day aboard National Geographic Sea Bird with morning excursions to Salt Chuck Bay for kayaking, paddleboarding, and hikes in the forest and intertidal zone. Conditions were calm, and the weather couldn’t have been better. Our afternoon activities took us to a favorite location, the Inian Islands, where we couldn’t even anchor before we began spotting humpback whales.

Zodiac cruises did not disappoint. We saw Steller sea lions, sea otters, more humpback whales, and even some hauled-out harbor seals. We finished the day with more humpback whales lunge-feeding and beaching as the sun set on Southeast Alaska.