At the Terminal Moraine of Laconte Glacier, Southeastern Alaska
Morning found us going by the Norwegian fishing town of Petersburg, on Mitkof Island, in Southeastern Alaska. A few miles distant was the entrance to Laconte Glacier, quite clogged with icebergs. Some of us took float planes to fly over the glacier area, and others of us took incredible Zodiac tours, as we sighted a big pod of killer whales or orcas, moving slowly about the area, probably capturing big fish at the mouth of the fjord. Big adult males of up to 10 meters in length were observed, forming part of small groups of four to six animals. Many of these small groups were seen during this time in the area, blowing individually or in-groups. In Alaska it is easy to see the two types of killer whales known: resident and transient. The resident animals are generally fish-eaters, the transient generally feed on marine mammals, such as seals, sea lions, otters and sea birds. These seemed to be residents, as it was quite a large group. All of us had the magnificent opportunity of photographing them till we were out of film!Immediately afterwards, we pointed our bows to the ice pieces coming out of the fjord. White, indigo blue and transparent, of all imaginable forms! The color depended on the position of that specific piece of ice within the glacier: whiter ice was nearer the upper surface, blue and transparent further down. Bald eagles considered some of these chunks of ice to be good observation stations for fish, but would take off as soon as we approached them. Quite an array of seabirds was to be seen.
At around midday we turned around and wended our way back to Petersburg, to enjoy an afternoon touring the fish packers, walking in a muskeg or bog in the vicinity of the town, on Kupreanof Island. This bog has had a boardwalk built on it, to protect it from damage done by walking in it's midst. In this manner we can walk and enjoy the incredible flora and sometimes fauna that is to be found in an environment of this type. Typical plants include the carnivorous sundews, bog laurel, Labrador Tea, deer cabbage, sphagnum moss and trees seen only in these muskegs: mountain hemlock, shore or lodgepole pine, red and yellow cedar and common juniper, together with a few skunk cabbage individuals.
Morning found us going by the Norwegian fishing town of Petersburg, on Mitkof Island, in Southeastern Alaska. A few miles distant was the entrance to Laconte Glacier, quite clogged with icebergs. Some of us took float planes to fly over the glacier area, and others of us took incredible Zodiac tours, as we sighted a big pod of killer whales or orcas, moving slowly about the area, probably capturing big fish at the mouth of the fjord. Big adult males of up to 10 meters in length were observed, forming part of small groups of four to six animals. Many of these small groups were seen during this time in the area, blowing individually or in-groups. In Alaska it is easy to see the two types of killer whales known: resident and transient. The resident animals are generally fish-eaters, the transient generally feed on marine mammals, such as seals, sea lions, otters and sea birds. These seemed to be residents, as it was quite a large group. All of us had the magnificent opportunity of photographing them till we were out of film!Immediately afterwards, we pointed our bows to the ice pieces coming out of the fjord. White, indigo blue and transparent, of all imaginable forms! The color depended on the position of that specific piece of ice within the glacier: whiter ice was nearer the upper surface, blue and transparent further down. Bald eagles considered some of these chunks of ice to be good observation stations for fish, but would take off as soon as we approached them. Quite an array of seabirds was to be seen.
At around midday we turned around and wended our way back to Petersburg, to enjoy an afternoon touring the fish packers, walking in a muskeg or bog in the vicinity of the town, on Kupreanof Island. This bog has had a boardwalk built on it, to protect it from damage done by walking in it's midst. In this manner we can walk and enjoy the incredible flora and sometimes fauna that is to be found in an environment of this type. Typical plants include the carnivorous sundews, bog laurel, Labrador Tea, deer cabbage, sphagnum moss and trees seen only in these muskegs: mountain hemlock, shore or lodgepole pine, red and yellow cedar and common juniper, together with a few skunk cabbage individuals.
