Williams Cove & Tracy Arm
The infamous precipitation “liquid sunshine” accompanied us on our final day of exploring the coastal wilderness of Southeast Alaska. Captain Kalbach guided the Sea Lion across the Tracy Arm bar at 5:30AM with a full day’s plans: morning hikes at Williams Cove, afternoon ice tours in front of South Sawyer glacier, an evening farewell dinner, and a leisurely overnight cruise to the dock in Juneau.
Soon after crossing the bar, the Sea Lion entered Williams Cove and moved through the fog to her anchorage point. As Zodiacs were launched, hikers chose between short and long walks and headed to shore. Short hikers explored the exposed beach of low tide and ventured into the forest beyond the beach landing. Long hikers reached a muskeg, or sphagnum bog, and saw many signs of beaver along the trail. The terrain coupled with the weather reminded everyone that Southeast Alaska is, after all (and after a week of sunshine!), a rainforest.
During lunch, we journeyed into Tracy Arm, a 25-mile fjord ending dramatically at the faces of Sawyer and South Sawyer glaciers. Those out on deck (or those peering through a window from the cozy lounge) watched the fjord unwind before us. Waterfalls too numerous to count fell into the sea, slender white threads winding paths down the rock wall faces. A mountain goat moved nimbly across glistening rocks. Harbor seals began to pop their heads above the water’s surface. When the Sea Lion reached a suitable launching site, we boarded Zodiacs for a closer look at the landscape around us. Icebergs as blue as turquoise floated by, teaching us about differential absorption, a process by which ice is so densely packed that all parts of the spectrum are absorbed except blue. Harbor seals hauled out on bits of floating ice watched us motor by, undisturbed by our presence. Glaucous winged and herring gulls flew overhead. As a grand backdrop to everything, ice pinnacles called seracs rose from the top of South Sawyer glacier. The glacier itself, one of ten glaciers stemming from the Stikine ice field, acknowledged our presence and became active as we watched. Loose bits from the lateral moraine slipped into the water. A significant portion of the glacier’s face calved into the water echoing tremendous sounds of white thunder and leaving 8-12 foot swells in its wake.
At the conclusion of ice tours, everyone returned to the warmth of the Sea Lion to dry out and enjoy a final cocktail hour and daily re-cap. As we gathered together around the dining room tables for Captain’s farewell dinner, the Sea Lion picked up speed and motored on toward Juneau, stopping only once for a special look at Hole in the Wall waterfall before dark.
The infamous precipitation “liquid sunshine” accompanied us on our final day of exploring the coastal wilderness of Southeast Alaska. Captain Kalbach guided the Sea Lion across the Tracy Arm bar at 5:30AM with a full day’s plans: morning hikes at Williams Cove, afternoon ice tours in front of South Sawyer glacier, an evening farewell dinner, and a leisurely overnight cruise to the dock in Juneau.
Soon after crossing the bar, the Sea Lion entered Williams Cove and moved through the fog to her anchorage point. As Zodiacs were launched, hikers chose between short and long walks and headed to shore. Short hikers explored the exposed beach of low tide and ventured into the forest beyond the beach landing. Long hikers reached a muskeg, or sphagnum bog, and saw many signs of beaver along the trail. The terrain coupled with the weather reminded everyone that Southeast Alaska is, after all (and after a week of sunshine!), a rainforest.
During lunch, we journeyed into Tracy Arm, a 25-mile fjord ending dramatically at the faces of Sawyer and South Sawyer glaciers. Those out on deck (or those peering through a window from the cozy lounge) watched the fjord unwind before us. Waterfalls too numerous to count fell into the sea, slender white threads winding paths down the rock wall faces. A mountain goat moved nimbly across glistening rocks. Harbor seals began to pop their heads above the water’s surface. When the Sea Lion reached a suitable launching site, we boarded Zodiacs for a closer look at the landscape around us. Icebergs as blue as turquoise floated by, teaching us about differential absorption, a process by which ice is so densely packed that all parts of the spectrum are absorbed except blue. Harbor seals hauled out on bits of floating ice watched us motor by, undisturbed by our presence. Glaucous winged and herring gulls flew overhead. As a grand backdrop to everything, ice pinnacles called seracs rose from the top of South Sawyer glacier. The glacier itself, one of ten glaciers stemming from the Stikine ice field, acknowledged our presence and became active as we watched. Loose bits from the lateral moraine slipped into the water. A significant portion of the glacier’s face calved into the water echoing tremendous sounds of white thunder and leaving 8-12 foot swells in its wake.
At the conclusion of ice tours, everyone returned to the warmth of the Sea Lion to dry out and enjoy a final cocktail hour and daily re-cap. As we gathered together around the dining room tables for Captain’s farewell dinner, the Sea Lion picked up speed and motored on toward Juneau, stopping only once for a special look at Hole in the Wall waterfall before dark.
