Petersburg and Thomas Bay
These golden light rays illuminating the Patterson Glacier early this morning offered us a hint of the beautiful day that lay before us. Our morning in the Norwegian-flavored fishing town of Petersburg offered a variety of interesting activities. Guests that chose trips aboard floatplanes and helicopters had adventurous and breathtaking views of the LeConte and Patterson glaciers. Others learned more about the local fishing culture by opting for a tour of a seafood processing plant. A stroll through the streets of Petersburg revealed a bit of life in a working Alaskan town.
Some chose to follow the Petersburg Creek boardwalk through the forest and up to the muskeg or bog, a special area of poor drainage and acidic water and soil conditions where plants have adapted to the lack of nutrients in unusual and amazing ways. The shore pine and mountain hemlock trees found in the muskeg are small, fancifully twisted and stunted, and draped with bright green lichens called old man’s beard or witch’s hair. They rival the most carefully cultured bonsai trees, and immediately caught our attention. Upon closer inspection of the area, tiny low bush cranberries or lingonberries and crowberries revealed themselves among the red and yellow sphagnum mosses that help to hold the water in this permanently wet place. Also found here are two species of carnivorous plants as the area’s lack of normal nutrients calls for creative ways to make a living. The red pads of the round-leafed and long-leaved sundew plants are fringed with red hairs and covered with drops of sticky liquid that will hold a small insect captive.
A sunny afternoon hike beside the tumultuous waterfall of Cascade Creek in Thomas Bay was a stunning conclusion to this day of Southeast Alaska discovery.
These golden light rays illuminating the Patterson Glacier early this morning offered us a hint of the beautiful day that lay before us. Our morning in the Norwegian-flavored fishing town of Petersburg offered a variety of interesting activities. Guests that chose trips aboard floatplanes and helicopters had adventurous and breathtaking views of the LeConte and Patterson glaciers. Others learned more about the local fishing culture by opting for a tour of a seafood processing plant. A stroll through the streets of Petersburg revealed a bit of life in a working Alaskan town.
Some chose to follow the Petersburg Creek boardwalk through the forest and up to the muskeg or bog, a special area of poor drainage and acidic water and soil conditions where plants have adapted to the lack of nutrients in unusual and amazing ways. The shore pine and mountain hemlock trees found in the muskeg are small, fancifully twisted and stunted, and draped with bright green lichens called old man’s beard or witch’s hair. They rival the most carefully cultured bonsai trees, and immediately caught our attention. Upon closer inspection of the area, tiny low bush cranberries or lingonberries and crowberries revealed themselves among the red and yellow sphagnum mosses that help to hold the water in this permanently wet place. Also found here are two species of carnivorous plants as the area’s lack of normal nutrients calls for creative ways to make a living. The red pads of the round-leafed and long-leaved sundew plants are fringed with red hairs and covered with drops of sticky liquid that will hold a small insect captive.
A sunny afternoon hike beside the tumultuous waterfall of Cascade Creek in Thomas Bay was a stunning conclusion to this day of Southeast Alaska discovery.
