Glacier Bay National Park
We entered Glacier Bay National Park in the early hours of the morning, into a thick fog and limited visibility. Bartlett Cove was quiet when we picked up Rangers Sierra and Sarah, who came aboard as we began our trek north.
Our first stop was South Marble Island, a wonderful place to become acquainted with sea birds and marine mammals. All along the cliff wall we watched Tufted puffins, Common murres, Black-legged kittiwakes, Pigeon guillemots, and many more species. As we rounded the corner of the island, we were treated to the sights and smells of Steller’s sea lions hauled out on the rocks. It was a true sensory experience!
As we continued north, the dense fog began to burn away, revealing spectacular views of the Fairweather Mountains and Mt. Fairweather, itself. As we entered Tidal Inlet, the day was improving to the point of a cloudless sky. At the entrance to the inlet, there was a raft of Surf scoters that numbered in the hundreds! The small, multicolored ducks stretched across the entrance and quickly flapped out of the way to let our small ship pass. Inside Tidal we came upon a small, unusually colored Brown bear. Its coloration included golden guard hairs, and black or dark brown feet. It was foraging along the top of the tide line and eventually decided to wait out the warming hours in some cool grass.
Gloomy Knob was a good introduction to the fascinating geology of the park and also yielded a beautiful, newly-molted Mountain goat. It was a large, healthy adult with an immaculately soft, clean, coat. Being so low to the water, it gave us a great idea of its true shape and size.
Continuing on into Russell Cut we found another Brown bear. This strong, frisky animal was at the shoreline, turning over boulders to produce a meal. Its powerful forepaws and huge shoulder muscles alluded to the immense strength of these large omnivores.
The afternoon brought us into the most dramatic scene of the park. Johns Hopkins Inlet, as viewed from Jaw Point and beyond, was as still as glass and filled with small growlers and bergie bits. We sailed in as far as we could, keeping a close eye on the distant harbor seal population, and enjoyed the mountain views which dwarfed the massive glacier.
Our last stop in the northern part of the park was in front of Lamplugh Glacier. Undoubtedly the bluest glacier in the park, Lamplugh is easy to approach, as its face is (barely) land-locked. The freshwater melt stream flowing out of the face of Lamplugh was a raging torrent of coffee-colored water. It poured out of a hole, part-way up the smoothest aspect of the glacier’s face.
Sunshine stayed with us as we continued southward toward Bartlett Cove and we arrived at the Park Headquarters just after dinner. Many guests decided to complete the evening by joining the naturalists on the forest loop trail, or by just exploring the beautiful terrain on their own.
