LeConte Bay & Petersburg
Back to “Plan A.” Yesterday’s weather was left behind as we awoke on course for LeConte Bay and a morning of Zodiac cruises among the icebergs. A swift tide flowed down from the glacier, and bergy bits, growlers and smaller icebergs moved rapidly between the larger beached icebergs.
We found ourselves in a sculptural ice extravaganza. Everywhere we looked, exquisite forms revealed themselves. One person likened it to going to an art museum and loving every item displayed. Another suggested it was like a cathedral to the beauty of nature. Photographers had a blast while Zodiac drivers positioned and repositioned for every angle.
As we headed to our next stop, the small fishing town of Petersburg, National Geographic Photographer Flip Nicklin gave us a great presentation, “Expedition Travel Photography.” After a couple hours exploring around Petersburg, we headed off down Wrangell Narrows, a complicated navigational channel.
We emerged into Sumner Strait and our expert eyes on the bow quickly found numerous humpback whales. One promptly breached close to the ship, which certainly caught the attention of everyone on deck.
As we sailed towards Snow Pass, in the distance a humpback whale was spotted lunge feeding to the southwest. We set off to investigate and were hugely rewarded to find a single whale bubblenet feeding. Shortly a second humpback joined in, and we all witnessed a perfectly synchronized double lunge up through the bubblenet. The gulls did an excellent job of tipping us off to the exact location of the forming bubblenet, and shutters clicked wildly with each lunge. As the sun dropped lower, a third whale joined in.
It was a truly amazing experience, followed by an equally spectacular, colorful sunset.
What a day!
