Pt. Adolphus, George Island
Pt. Adolphus marks the northeastern corner of Chichagof Island, and is the point at which Icy Strait turns southeastward to join Chatham Strait. The immense amount of Pacific Ocean water that floods and ebbs past this point creates strong currents and stirs up the abundant nutrients that run off the land. This combination makes it an incredibly productive area. We saw ample evidence of that productivity when we first woke up this morning. Over the course of several hours, we watched several harbor porpoises working the current line, a gang of Steller sea lions foraging alongside, thousands of birds picking nutritious bits from the surface and nearly a dozen humpback whales feeding cooperatively. It’s hard to imagine that there is enough food in these depths to support a dozen 40-ton cetaceans, but they return annually for the feast.
After our morning with the humpbacks, we continued westward in Icy Strait and entered the mouth of Idaho Inlet. Here we found the smallest and furriest of the marine mammals – sea otters. While we watched quietly from the bow, these large weasels lazed on their backs, groomed their incredibly dense fur and occasionally dove to the bottom for a snack.
After lunch we went ashore at George Island for walks in the woods and an opportunity to paddle our fleet of kayaks. Although the swell arriving from the Pacific was significant, we found calm water on the leeward side of the island. Purple sea stars and giant green anemones clung to the rocks and forests of bull kelp bobbed in the waves. The walkers discovered the presence of humans on the island when they reached an old WWII gun emplacement, hidden in the trees, but aimed out toward the Pacific.
As evening approached, we returned to the Sea Bird for hot showers and dry clothes, cocktails and dinner. And all agreed this was a fine beginning to our Inside Passage exploration.
Pt. Adolphus marks the northeastern corner of Chichagof Island, and is the point at which Icy Strait turns southeastward to join Chatham Strait. The immense amount of Pacific Ocean water that floods and ebbs past this point creates strong currents and stirs up the abundant nutrients that run off the land. This combination makes it an incredibly productive area. We saw ample evidence of that productivity when we first woke up this morning. Over the course of several hours, we watched several harbor porpoises working the current line, a gang of Steller sea lions foraging alongside, thousands of birds picking nutritious bits from the surface and nearly a dozen humpback whales feeding cooperatively. It’s hard to imagine that there is enough food in these depths to support a dozen 40-ton cetaceans, but they return annually for the feast.
After our morning with the humpbacks, we continued westward in Icy Strait and entered the mouth of Idaho Inlet. Here we found the smallest and furriest of the marine mammals – sea otters. While we watched quietly from the bow, these large weasels lazed on their backs, groomed their incredibly dense fur and occasionally dove to the bottom for a snack.
After lunch we went ashore at George Island for walks in the woods and an opportunity to paddle our fleet of kayaks. Although the swell arriving from the Pacific was significant, we found calm water on the leeward side of the island. Purple sea stars and giant green anemones clung to the rocks and forests of bull kelp bobbed in the waves. The walkers discovered the presence of humans on the island when they reached an old WWII gun emplacement, hidden in the trees, but aimed out toward the Pacific.
As evening approached, we returned to the Sea Bird for hot showers and dry clothes, cocktails and dinner. And all agreed this was a fine beginning to our Inside Passage exploration.
