Glacier Bay National Park
Southeast Alaska has had some remarkable days as of late, creating more of a tropical rain forest environment than a temperate one. We, the guests of the National Geographic Sea Lion, hear those in the lower 48 are calling it “Baked Alaska.” This morning however, we were welcomed back to the Alaska we know and love, waking under overcast skies, clouds swirling around the tops of the mountains. The fresh air we inhale into our lungs has a notable crispness to it.
Today we are visiting one of the most extraordinary places in Alaska, if not the United States, as we spend the day in Glacier Bay National Park. The Ecological Society of America originally lobbied for Glacier Bay to be set aside as a natural laboratory for studies of glaciology and associated biological and physical processes. When Glacier Bay National Monument was designated in 1925, the enabling legislation included an explicit recognition of the area’s value in providing "a unique opportunity for the scientific study of glacial behavior and of resulting movements and development of flora and fauna and of certain valuable relics of ancient interglacial forests…".
The name was later changed to Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve on Dec. 2, 1980 by the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act, and the park area was included in an International Biosphere Reserve in 1986, as well as part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Regulations prevent us from getting off the ship, however with so much wilderness to explore in one day, it is best to be on a mobile vessel rather than our own two feet.
Early morning sends us cruising north up the waterways of the park, stopping at some of the most scenic and wildlife rich areas along the way. Stopping at South Marble Island, we see that its outlying isolated rocky extensions create a perfect haul out for Steller sea lions. Yet the main island, a combination of rocky ledges and small hills covered with grass and purple wild flowers, is the perfect habit for nesting kittiwakes and tufted puffins. We watch with amusement as the seals tussle amidst a cacophony of kittiwake cries.
Sailing deeper into the park, the cliffs around us become higher – enough to initiate vertigo in the those of us who fear heights if we concentrated – but there is one creature who seems to have no such fear, the mountain goat. The steep sides of Gloomy Knob are the showcase for three mountain goats this morning. As we watched these incredibly sure-footed animals move along impossible ledges in the rock wall, Alaska suddenly turned tropical again, the sun once again dominating the sky.
Sailing further still through the glacial tilled water, we pass majestic mountains and seaside meadows, one in which a Brown Bear was lazily exploring drift wood and vegetation. Onwards we approach the face of Margerie Glacier, lit brilliantly in the sunlight, and – for the umpteenth time this voyage – we ask ourselves, ‘Does it get any better than this?’
Reluctantly we turn our bow back towards the entrance of the park and, before we know it, our time in Glacier Bay is over - far too soon. But there are more adventures to be had in Southeast Alaska, and we don’t intend to miss a thing.
