Tracy Arm, Zodiac cruises to Sawyer Glacier
At 4:30 a.m. the Sea Lion crossed the bar or terminal moraine of the Sawyer glaciers and entered a thirty-two mile fjord called Tracy Arm. The Tracy Arm-Fords Terror Wilderness area is located forty-five miles southeast of Juneau. It encompasses 653,179 acres of the rugged Coast Mountains bordering Holkham Bay, on the east side of Stephens Passage. It surrounds three dramatic glacial fjords, Tracy and Endicott Arms and Fords Terror, and extends eastward to the glaciers and high mountains right on the Canadian border!
Just before 7:00 a.m. our expedition leader made a wake-up call inviting us all to the bow for a close-up and personal view of South Sawyer Glacier. Captain Delisle brought the Sea Lion just short of a quarter of a mile from the face of the glacier. From this intimate vantage point, we were able to not only watch as several small calvings brought ice tumbling down to the water surface, but we could hear the “white thunder” as it echoed back through this short arm of the fjord. Small sections of ice would pour off of the face of South Sawyer glacier, followed again and again by the exploding sounds of that same heavy ice hitting the salt water below. We remained at the face of South Sawyer glacier until breakfast was called, and then retreated to the dining room to fortify ourselves for the day’s activities. As we enjoyed yet another hearty breakfast, the Sea Lion began her maneuvers towards North Sawyer glacier. The fjord near the face of both of these glaciers was filled with varying pieces of ice. From bergy pits to growlers, and the mammoth icebergs, our captain expertly piloted our vessel to a safe place where Zodiacs could be launched. The natural history staff each took a Zodiac and stood down a safe distance from the Sea Lion until breakfast was finished. At that point we were ready to board for the very special treat of an even closer and more personal view of Sawyer glacier. We filled the four Zodiacs quickly and began picking our way between the ice on our way to a closer view (a quarter of a mile off) of the two hundred foot high, one half a mile across wall of ice!
On our ride towards the face of the glacier our naturalists spotted harbor seals resting on some of the larger ice flows. Lifting their heads, they watched cautiously as we approached as quietly as we could. Their beautifully spotted and multicolored furs shone in the sunlight while their large brown eyes darted back and forth between moving ice and Zodiacs, ever aware of the possibility of predators. Harbor seals come into these fjords in early spring to give birth to their young. The pupping of harbor seals reaches its peak between the middle of May and continues through the middle of July. Pups weigh about twenty pounds at birth. They are born with their eyes open and can swim within an hour of birth. Lactation occurs for three to six weeks, then the mother separates from the pup and the two probably do not re-associate. Female harbor seal’s milk is extremely fat-rich, and young seals can weigh up to sixty pounds by weaning.
Our fleet of Zodiacs continued towards the face of the glacier. We had been listening to small calvings on our way, and now just a quarter of a mile from the face both sides of this large wall of ice began showing signs of falling ice. Several tall spires of ice had formed a prominent tongue off the front of Sawyer and it was in that spot that we all concentrated our energy in hopes of a huge calving of ice. As if on cue, small pieces began to fall all around this large pinnacle of ice and then…..a large section fell! Our shouts echoed off the wall of the fjord, arctic terns began to circle the disturbed area in front of the glacier and a large wave made its way towards us. We all sat and quietly watched as the icebergs around us and our Zodiacs were gently rocked by large rolling waves coming from the large piece of ice that had just fallen off the face of Sawyer glacier.
All too soon, we were called back to the Sea Lion. Reluctantly, all Zodiacs turned to make the return trip through the ice flows from past calvings, our eyes turned back to the face of Sawyer glacier in hopes of more falling ice.
Once on board, the Sea Lion began her return passage down Tracy Arm heading for Williams Cove. On our way we made a stop at “Hole in the Wall” waterfall. As a special treat on this extremely warm day, Captain Delisle brought our vessel in for a little dip in the chilly but refreshing waters of this waterfall. Because of the extreme depth of Tracy Arm our Captain was able to maneuver close to the wall of the fjord and just slightly dip our bow under the water, while most of the natural history staff and several of guests enjoyed a wonderful dousing in the softest and cleanest water one could imagine! Shouts of laughter, cameras clicking and a busy artist at work all captured our midday adventure! Slowly the Sea Lion retreated from “Hole in the Wall” falls, and headed west towards the mouth of Tracy Arm and our afternoon destination.
Once anchored in Williams Cove, kayaks were lowered along with the Zodiacs. As soon as all preparations were completed, we headed for shore to enjoy a walk in the forest along with a warm sunny afternoon of kayaking in this secluded cove. The hike through a beautifully lit forest came to an exciting close as a small brown bear cub was spotted on the trail. Zodiacs came over to watch for the mother bear, and provide extra support to our hiking group, who were making their way along the shore a safe distance from the trail just inside the forest. All too soon, we were called back to the Sea Lion for our evening’s activities. Just as everyone was relaxing in the warm afternoon, one of our naturalists spotted our small bear friend, returning to the beach to forage in peace and explore the smells our presence had left behind! In early evening light we adjourned to the forward lounge for our final recap of reflection on seven days of absolutely incredible experiences! Captain’s farewell dinner was announced and we all sat down for great conversation and a sumptuous feast. As dinner finished, many of us returned to our cabins to finish our packing and take a turn around the decks in the warm air and soft evening light at the finish of this beautiful clear day. Just to make sure we did not relax too much we began to hear some excitement coming from the fantail of the ship…..it seems our chief engineer Greg Merrithew had an unbelievably huge halibut on a fishing line. He had been slowing reeling in a 175-pound fish for at least thirty minutes before the rest of the boat finally got wind of what was going on! For the next forty-five minutes most of the residents of the Sea Lion were hanging over the aft two hundred deck, gathered along the steps leading down to the fantail and on the fantail watching, as this five foot long fish was reeled into a waiting Zodiac. We cheered, we shouted and encouraged Greg as he brought in one of the biggest halibuts many of us had ever seen. As the light dimmed, and photos were taken of our officers and their catch, once again we were aware of the great richness of this last frontier called Southeast Alaska.
