Scenery Cove & Petersburg
Every time we come into the area near Le Conte Glacier we expect gray skies and cool weather. And yes, we got them. From afar, the big icebergs stuck on the frontal moraine of the glacier,: deposited a long time ago, forming a line of aquamarine crystals, the early morning sun illuminating them from behind, and a low-slung gray ominous sky above them. Scenery Cove has a lovely hike and a series of small lakes, engulfed in a magical old forest, hanging with old-man’s beard lichen and moss. Some of us did the long hike, several miles of board-walk, and others a shorter version, just as scenic.
By midday we were all back on the Sea Bird, and sailed off to the northwest, in the direction of Petersburg. This interesting small town (pop. 8,500), is a realistic fishing town, having been founded by Norwegians some time ago. It was put there because of the proximity to ice (all they ever needed, from Le Conte Glacier) and because of the Wrangel Narrows, one of the shortcuts to Canada and the lower 48 states. Several canneries or packeries of all types of seafood work 24 hours each day, and provide many workers with a good income.
There, we all disbanded into town and the vicinity via walking or on a number of bicycles provided by Lindblad. The town is definitely not a tourist town, there are only two small shops selling t-shirts and gifts
By late afternoon, with our curiosity quenched, we slowly headed out to Chatham Strait, in search of whales.
Every time we come into the area near Le Conte Glacier we expect gray skies and cool weather. And yes, we got them. From afar, the big icebergs stuck on the frontal moraine of the glacier,: deposited a long time ago, forming a line of aquamarine crystals, the early morning sun illuminating them from behind, and a low-slung gray ominous sky above them. Scenery Cove has a lovely hike and a series of small lakes, engulfed in a magical old forest, hanging with old-man’s beard lichen and moss. Some of us did the long hike, several miles of board-walk, and others a shorter version, just as scenic.
By midday we were all back on the Sea Bird, and sailed off to the northwest, in the direction of Petersburg. This interesting small town (pop. 8,500), is a realistic fishing town, having been founded by Norwegians some time ago. It was put there because of the proximity to ice (all they ever needed, from Le Conte Glacier) and because of the Wrangel Narrows, one of the shortcuts to Canada and the lower 48 states. Several canneries or packeries of all types of seafood work 24 hours each day, and provide many workers with a good income.
There, we all disbanded into town and the vicinity via walking or on a number of bicycles provided by Lindblad. The town is definitely not a tourist town, there are only two small shops selling t-shirts and gifts
By late afternoon, with our curiosity quenched, we slowly headed out to Chatham Strait, in search of whales.
