Kelp Bay, Baranof Island & Chatham Strait
After leaving Sitka yesterday evening, passing fishing boats in the harbor and the snowy flanks of distant Mt. Edgecomb, we were treated to a fantastic look at three brown bears foraging in the intertidal zone along a narrow passage on Baranof Island. A mother with her two cubs grazed on rye-grass and one youngster briefly flopped down into the damp brown algae. This morning we were in protected Kelp Bay along the eastern shore of Baranof with clear skies that remained with us throughout. A humpback whale, a river otter, and many sorts of waterbirds were seen. The still air silence was punctuated by the high-pitched calls of marbled murrelets, enigmatic old-growth forest denizens and kin to the puffins, scattered in pairs on the water. A merlin, a small type of falcon, flew past as we watched two Sitka black-tailed deer at the water’s edge, and all of this nature witnessed prior to our first meal of the day.
We went ashore and into the rainforest. Tall hemlock and spruce trees festooned with lichens and mosses gave way to a small meadowy area and tannin-rich stream. The exposed intertidal zone proved attractive to many birds, among them savannah and golden-crowned sparrows, hermit and varied thrushes, and several bright yellow Wilson’s warblers. A rufous hummingbird plucked midges out of mid-air. We reached a boggy habitat known as muskeg with scattered yellow cedar, and saw a lovely purple ‘fairy slipper’ orchid, Calypso bulbosa. Kayakers were treated to a paddle amidst gorgeous scenery: dark waters, verdant rainforest, a harbor seal popping its head out for a look-see, and snow-capped peaks on Baranof Island as a striking visual backdrop.
We headed north through Chatham Strait, conditions still ideal. The virtually flat surface of the water revealed an abundance of Dall’s Porpoises. On several occasions some of these fast-swimming cetaceans rushed toward the ship and rode the bow’s pressure wave, with as many as eight at one time. With their striking piebald markings they slid through the water seemingly without effort, sometimes power-stroking their tails to rush ahead or vie for a better position. Steve MacLean presented an excellent lecture on Alaskan Forest Ecology and highlighted some of the conservation issues pertaining to the Tongass National Forest. Just before recap Captain David Sinclair positioned the National Geographic Sea Lion close to a feeding humpback whale. And as we dined the spectacular weather that had been with us all day long continued into the evening. Our first full day in Southeast Alaska had been a brilliant one.
After leaving Sitka yesterday evening, passing fishing boats in the harbor and the snowy flanks of distant Mt. Edgecomb, we were treated to a fantastic look at three brown bears foraging in the intertidal zone along a narrow passage on Baranof Island. A mother with her two cubs grazed on rye-grass and one youngster briefly flopped down into the damp brown algae. This morning we were in protected Kelp Bay along the eastern shore of Baranof with clear skies that remained with us throughout. A humpback whale, a river otter, and many sorts of waterbirds were seen. The still air silence was punctuated by the high-pitched calls of marbled murrelets, enigmatic old-growth forest denizens and kin to the puffins, scattered in pairs on the water. A merlin, a small type of falcon, flew past as we watched two Sitka black-tailed deer at the water’s edge, and all of this nature witnessed prior to our first meal of the day.
We went ashore and into the rainforest. Tall hemlock and spruce trees festooned with lichens and mosses gave way to a small meadowy area and tannin-rich stream. The exposed intertidal zone proved attractive to many birds, among them savannah and golden-crowned sparrows, hermit and varied thrushes, and several bright yellow Wilson’s warblers. A rufous hummingbird plucked midges out of mid-air. We reached a boggy habitat known as muskeg with scattered yellow cedar, and saw a lovely purple ‘fairy slipper’ orchid, Calypso bulbosa. Kayakers were treated to a paddle amidst gorgeous scenery: dark waters, verdant rainforest, a harbor seal popping its head out for a look-see, and snow-capped peaks on Baranof Island as a striking visual backdrop.
We headed north through Chatham Strait, conditions still ideal. The virtually flat surface of the water revealed an abundance of Dall’s Porpoises. On several occasions some of these fast-swimming cetaceans rushed toward the ship and rode the bow’s pressure wave, with as many as eight at one time. With their striking piebald markings they slid through the water seemingly without effort, sometimes power-stroking their tails to rush ahead or vie for a better position. Steve MacLean presented an excellent lecture on Alaskan Forest Ecology and highlighted some of the conservation issues pertaining to the Tongass National Forest. Just before recap Captain David Sinclair positioned the National Geographic Sea Lion close to a feeding humpback whale. And as we dined the spectacular weather that had been with us all day long continued into the evening. Our first full day in Southeast Alaska had been a brilliant one.
