Basket Bay and Sitkoh Bay
At the customary morning wakeup call, Michelle let us know that Dall’s porpoises were bow riding. Some of us dashed out right away to see a new marine mammal up close, straight below the bow. Others strolled out to the bow 15 minutes later, figuring that we were too late. Today we were wrong. The porpoises gave us a much appreciated second viewing. Six of them, being pushed by the pressure wave just in front of the bow, meandered and weaved in a water dance of sleek, black and white bodies. They glided smoothly under the surface without making a ripple until needing another breath. Then, in a small puff of spray, they were at the surface only long enough for a quick exhalation and inhalation through their single blow hole before sliding back down to continue the ride.
After breakfast, we went for Zodiac cruises in Basket Bay. We watched a Sitka black-tail deer feeding on the shore, kingfishers winging around the cove, and baby salmon darting in schools under our boat. Tucked into a hidden corner of the cove was the entrance to Kook Creek. Slowly motoring (and paddling) up the creek with the rising tide allowed us to enjoy the marble archway and other surprises in the grotto. The swirling mix of salt and freshwater gave everything below the water a shimmering glow.
Our afternoon in Sitkoh Bay was a great way to stretch our legs. Signs of others who had walked the same path were everywhere in the form of bear scat. Some of us were privileged to see a sow and her two yearling cubs meander away from us leaving a trail of munched vegetation in their wake. At this time of year, the main food in the brown bear’s diet is grass and other greens. But all along the trail grew the beginnings of the foods they will soon add into their diet. Cow parsnip and thimbleberry were in full bloom and will soon provide nutritious berries and seeds for the bears.
The official solstice day length (sunrise to sunset) here in Southeast Alaska is 18 hours and 15 minutes, but the amount of daylight is much longer, leaving us at most a few hours of darkness. Not only will we appreciate the long evening and drawn out sunset, but the bears will revel in the lush greenery produced so quickly in this long light.
At the customary morning wakeup call, Michelle let us know that Dall’s porpoises were bow riding. Some of us dashed out right away to see a new marine mammal up close, straight below the bow. Others strolled out to the bow 15 minutes later, figuring that we were too late. Today we were wrong. The porpoises gave us a much appreciated second viewing. Six of them, being pushed by the pressure wave just in front of the bow, meandered and weaved in a water dance of sleek, black and white bodies. They glided smoothly under the surface without making a ripple until needing another breath. Then, in a small puff of spray, they were at the surface only long enough for a quick exhalation and inhalation through their single blow hole before sliding back down to continue the ride.
After breakfast, we went for Zodiac cruises in Basket Bay. We watched a Sitka black-tail deer feeding on the shore, kingfishers winging around the cove, and baby salmon darting in schools under our boat. Tucked into a hidden corner of the cove was the entrance to Kook Creek. Slowly motoring (and paddling) up the creek with the rising tide allowed us to enjoy the marble archway and other surprises in the grotto. The swirling mix of salt and freshwater gave everything below the water a shimmering glow.
Our afternoon in Sitkoh Bay was a great way to stretch our legs. Signs of others who had walked the same path were everywhere in the form of bear scat. Some of us were privileged to see a sow and her two yearling cubs meander away from us leaving a trail of munched vegetation in their wake. At this time of year, the main food in the brown bear’s diet is grass and other greens. But all along the trail grew the beginnings of the foods they will soon add into their diet. Cow parsnip and thimbleberry were in full bloom and will soon provide nutritious berries and seeds for the bears.
The official solstice day length (sunrise to sunset) here in Southeast Alaska is 18 hours and 15 minutes, but the amount of daylight is much longer, leaving us at most a few hours of darkness. Not only will we appreciate the long evening and drawn out sunset, but the bears will revel in the lush greenery produced so quickly in this long light.
