Wrangell and Stikine River, Southeast Alaska, 7/23/2024, National Geographic Sea Bird
Aboard the
National Geographic Sea Bird
Alaska
The small Southeast Alaskan town of Wrangell was the base of our operations today.
We visited Chief Shakes Longhouse for a presentation on Tlingit culture and history. Afterwards, we boarded jet boats and cruised up the Stikine River all the way to Shakes Glacier. Wildlife sightings on the way included bald eagles, harbor seals, and a moose swimming across the river.
Steve began watching whales in 1986 off the California coast, far from his North Dakota homeland. A long the way he studied natural history at the Evergreen State College in Washington state (1982) and has been busy ever since working as an environme...
Enter travel details to receive reports from a single expedition
Loading...
Loading...
Loading...
Send Daily Expedition Reports to friends and family
*By clicking the submit button, I authorize Lindblad Expeditions to email me; however, I am able to unsubscribe at any time. For more details, see our Privacy Policy.
Please note: All Daily Expedition Reports (DERs) are posted Monday-Friday,
during normal business hours. DERs are written onboard the ship only and do
not apply to land-based portions of expeditions.
Today in Southeast Alaska was, simply put, AMAZING! We spent the majority of our day either on land hiking or on the water kayaking. We first anchored at a favorite place of our naturalists, Cascade Creek, to explore another temperate rainforest. This particular spot has a massive cascading waterfall that guests get to gaze upon as they explore the forest. A few guests even stood, arms wide open, basking in the mist of the Cascade. After lunch we stopped at another place, called Scenery Cove, and guests hopped into kayaks for a lovely paddle around the cove. Throughout the day the weather was a perfect Alaska summer day - not hot, no rain, clouds low and ribboned throughout the mountainous forests. Alaska holds in her a certain beauty that cannot be replicated. We all agreed, today was a day for which to be grateful.
Today, National Geographic Sea Bird visited the South Sawyer Glacier. The fjord leading up to the glacier is lined with high and rugged snowcapped mountain peaks, gorgeous waterfalls, and stunning wildlife. In 1879, naturalist John Muir visited the Tracy Arm Fjord. He described the area as, “shut in by sublime Yosemite cliffs, nobly sculptured, and adorned with waterfalls and fringes of trees, bushes and patches of flowers.” This quote captures the same essence and beauty of the Tracy Arm Fjord that we experienced today. But John Muir was never visited by pirates delivering hot chocolate via Zodiac! Dressed in pirate regalia, National Geographic Sea Bird’s fantastic hospitality team delivered hot chocolate topped with whipped cream to guests on Zodiacs as they toured the glacier. After this, we dropped anchor in Williams Cove at the west end of the fjord for a fabulous bushwhack along brown bear trails. Ah, the spirit of exploration!
