Frederick Sound, Inian Islands and Shaw Islands
Morning. Calm seas, clearing skies. Gentle and peaceful. Both relaxing and refreshing at the same time. We awoke in the presence of eight humpback whales. Out on the bow we delighted in the sights as well as the sounds and smells. Many times the whales came close enough that we could hear the inhalation as well as the exhalation. The mist created from the “blows” hung in the still air as the morning light glinted off their backs. And the rich ocean and fishy smell of the water gave a clue as to why there were so many marbled murrelets, black-legged kittiwakes and glaucous-winged gulls in the area as well.
After breakfast we found more humpback whales. We were more awake, and the activity of the whales had increased as well. We watched a group of five cruising and diving for a while, when across the channel another humpback began breaching! Although no one knows for sure why whales breach, it was a sight to behold. It kept up a mix of deep dives, breaches, and flipper slapping for many minutes. We didn’t count how many times it breached, but easily more than 20! Moving on to the Inian Islands, we realized that maybe the day had a theme. There we saw Steller’s sea lions cavorting in the current and chomping salmon that were swimming back from the open ocean and heading for the streams of their birth. Scattered throughout the morning we enjoyed glimpses of harbor porpoises as well. To put all these marine mammals in perspective, Liz gave us her lecture and slideshow on the marine mammals of Southeast Alaska.
After lunch, at anchor near the Shaw Islands in Idaho Inlet we went ashore for our choice of hikes and sea kayaking. The kayak circumnavigation of Shaw Island gave us the chance for some quiet exploration of the shoreline and the critters living in the kelp. On the hike near Fox Creek on Chichigof Island all of us were happy not to be alone or quiet when we saw the trees scratched by brown bears to mark their territories. The scratch marks, a combination of older and newer scars, were impressive with their height. The maker of one of the scars had reached at least 9 feet high. The most impressive sight there was the “hot feet” - the path that was used repeatedly with such a consistent walking pattern that the steps were cut permanently into the forest floor.
Finally, after dinner, our day ended nearly as peacefully as it began. We cruised the calm waters of Dundas Bay under clear skies and had the pleasure of sharing it with three (or was it five?) black bears and one brown bear, all of them taking advantage of the low tide to cruise the intertidal zone to search for food.
Morning. Calm seas, clearing skies. Gentle and peaceful. Both relaxing and refreshing at the same time. We awoke in the presence of eight humpback whales. Out on the bow we delighted in the sights as well as the sounds and smells. Many times the whales came close enough that we could hear the inhalation as well as the exhalation. The mist created from the “blows” hung in the still air as the morning light glinted off their backs. And the rich ocean and fishy smell of the water gave a clue as to why there were so many marbled murrelets, black-legged kittiwakes and glaucous-winged gulls in the area as well.
After breakfast we found more humpback whales. We were more awake, and the activity of the whales had increased as well. We watched a group of five cruising and diving for a while, when across the channel another humpback began breaching! Although no one knows for sure why whales breach, it was a sight to behold. It kept up a mix of deep dives, breaches, and flipper slapping for many minutes. We didn’t count how many times it breached, but easily more than 20! Moving on to the Inian Islands, we realized that maybe the day had a theme. There we saw Steller’s sea lions cavorting in the current and chomping salmon that were swimming back from the open ocean and heading for the streams of their birth. Scattered throughout the morning we enjoyed glimpses of harbor porpoises as well. To put all these marine mammals in perspective, Liz gave us her lecture and slideshow on the marine mammals of Southeast Alaska.
After lunch, at anchor near the Shaw Islands in Idaho Inlet we went ashore for our choice of hikes and sea kayaking. The kayak circumnavigation of Shaw Island gave us the chance for some quiet exploration of the shoreline and the critters living in the kelp. On the hike near Fox Creek on Chichigof Island all of us were happy not to be alone or quiet when we saw the trees scratched by brown bears to mark their territories. The scratch marks, a combination of older and newer scars, were impressive with their height. The maker of one of the scars had reached at least 9 feet high. The most impressive sight there was the “hot feet” - the path that was used repeatedly with such a consistent walking pattern that the steps were cut permanently into the forest floor.
Finally, after dinner, our day ended nearly as peacefully as it began. We cruised the calm waters of Dundas Bay under clear skies and had the pleasure of sharing it with three (or was it five?) black bears and one brown bear, all of them taking advantage of the low tide to cruise the intertidal zone to search for food.
