Pavlof Harbor, Chichagof Island
On most days Alaska provides us with wonderful wilderness experiences, filled with wildlife sightings and scenic grandeur…and then there was today! We began in Chatham Strait searching for whales, and we found them … a blow here, a fluke there…whales languidly cruising through the productive water, feeding to replenish the fat stores that must carry them through the ensuing winter in Hawaii. We watched, and then we headed below for our own breakfasts. Well, that didn’t last long! The call came that we had found the object of our search – four blows together, then four sets of flukes raised into the air then disappearing beneath the sea in close succession. Several minutes later the whales burst onto the surface as a tight group, huge mouths agape, throats distended with tons of engulfed water. We had found a group engaging in the amazing behavior of cooperative bubble-net feeding! Berit and Bryan dropped the hydrophone and we listened to the sounds made by the whales to coordinate this highly organized behavior.
The whales descend as a group and search for a school of herring. If they find the fish, they corral them with their long pectoral flippers and release a curtain of bubbles. One whale then gives the vocal signal and they ascend as a group through the net of bubbles. Kilograms of herring bite the dust, cameras click, and Sea Lion guests squeal in delight. Sometimes the tactics don’t work; apparently, the whales do not locate a school of prey and they must return to the surface to breath, regroup, and try again, but that only adds suspense for those watching from the ship. It was incredible to watch, and we didn’t think the whales could top it. However, just as we were going to leave, two humpbacks launched themselves into the air directly in front of the ship in a perfectly synchronized double breach! How awesome was that!
We moved to Pavlof Harbor for an afternoon of kayaking and walks along the beach and through the forest. We reached a stream that was filled with pink and chum salmon heading upstream to spawn. Dead fish lined the banks, many with their heads and eggs removed by hungry predators. We converged at a small waterfall, and there we came to a sudden stop. A sow brown bear with two cubs – one black and one almost blond – stood on the far bank of the stream. Mama Bear was catching salmon as they attempted to scale the falls, with the cubs clumsily imitating Mom, learning essential bear-skills.
Could there be more? Not likely, eh? But there was more! We encountered another group of bubble-net feeding humpbacks, a much larger group of twelve to fourteen whales. This group was more consistently successful. Our Captain maneuvered the ship to provide superb views of this most amazing behavior, repeated over and over to our immense delight.
Could there be even more? No way! But more there was! We had heard reports of intense solar activity – a solar storm. Solar activity + a clear sky in high latitudes like Alaska = (if we are REALLY lucky) a display of the Aurora Borealis – the Northern Lights. Our Expedition Leader’s dulcet tones roused us from our sleep with the announcement that Northern Lights were visible. It was the perfect conclusion to a magnificent day in Southeast Alaska.
On most days Alaska provides us with wonderful wilderness experiences, filled with wildlife sightings and scenic grandeur…and then there was today! We began in Chatham Strait searching for whales, and we found them … a blow here, a fluke there…whales languidly cruising through the productive water, feeding to replenish the fat stores that must carry them through the ensuing winter in Hawaii. We watched, and then we headed below for our own breakfasts. Well, that didn’t last long! The call came that we had found the object of our search – four blows together, then four sets of flukes raised into the air then disappearing beneath the sea in close succession. Several minutes later the whales burst onto the surface as a tight group, huge mouths agape, throats distended with tons of engulfed water. We had found a group engaging in the amazing behavior of cooperative bubble-net feeding! Berit and Bryan dropped the hydrophone and we listened to the sounds made by the whales to coordinate this highly organized behavior.
The whales descend as a group and search for a school of herring. If they find the fish, they corral them with their long pectoral flippers and release a curtain of bubbles. One whale then gives the vocal signal and they ascend as a group through the net of bubbles. Kilograms of herring bite the dust, cameras click, and Sea Lion guests squeal in delight. Sometimes the tactics don’t work; apparently, the whales do not locate a school of prey and they must return to the surface to breath, regroup, and try again, but that only adds suspense for those watching from the ship. It was incredible to watch, and we didn’t think the whales could top it. However, just as we were going to leave, two humpbacks launched themselves into the air directly in front of the ship in a perfectly synchronized double breach! How awesome was that!
We moved to Pavlof Harbor for an afternoon of kayaking and walks along the beach and through the forest. We reached a stream that was filled with pink and chum salmon heading upstream to spawn. Dead fish lined the banks, many with their heads and eggs removed by hungry predators. We converged at a small waterfall, and there we came to a sudden stop. A sow brown bear with two cubs – one black and one almost blond – stood on the far bank of the stream. Mama Bear was catching salmon as they attempted to scale the falls, with the cubs clumsily imitating Mom, learning essential bear-skills.
Could there be more? Not likely, eh? But there was more! We encountered another group of bubble-net feeding humpbacks, a much larger group of twelve to fourteen whales. This group was more consistently successful. Our Captain maneuvered the ship to provide superb views of this most amazing behavior, repeated over and over to our immense delight.
Could there be even more? No way! But more there was! We had heard reports of intense solar activity – a solar storm. Solar activity + a clear sky in high latitudes like Alaska = (if we are REALLY lucky) a display of the Aurora Borealis – the Northern Lights. Our Expedition Leader’s dulcet tones roused us from our sleep with the announcement that Northern Lights were visible. It was the perfect conclusion to a magnificent day in Southeast Alaska.
