Frederick Sound & Petersburg
Great snow-capped mountains with remnant glaciers nestled high up in their hanging valleys surround the Sea Lion this morning. The low clouds have lifted and our concepts of this vast land expand to encompass the extraordinary view. Here at the confluence of Stephen’s Passage and Frederick Sound, humpback whales are feeding, perhaps on krill or herring, but what strikes my eye are the beautiful backlit whale blows around us. In the dark rich waters of Southeast Alaska, food abounds and these massive animals migrate from their warm though nutrient poor winter breeding grounds in the Hawaiian Islands north to Southeast Alaska to feast on the abundant small prey species.
Our morning voyage continues to unveil the enormous and changing landscape before us as we head toward the north end of Wrangell Narrows where the village of Petersburg lies. Originally settled by Norwegian immigrants, this seemingly simple town is very important to the Alaskan fishing economy. Commercial crab and fish boats line the waterfront, and many of the purse seiners are loading ice and checking their nets in preparation for a salmon opening on Sunday.
Once alongside the dock, we scatter for varied activities...some folks head off to a small floatplane for a breathtaking overview of the LeConte Glacier while others take a bike ride through town or along the water on a beautiful trail. About half of us choose the boardwalk hike to the muskeg with its unusual plant life adapted to wet and acidic conditions and some prefer to explore this interesting town and its shops and docks on foot. However you choose to explore this very Alaskan –flavored place, it is a delightful and interesting little community surrounded by the vast and beautiful wilderness of the Tongass National Forest.
Great snow-capped mountains with remnant glaciers nestled high up in their hanging valleys surround the Sea Lion this morning. The low clouds have lifted and our concepts of this vast land expand to encompass the extraordinary view. Here at the confluence of Stephen’s Passage and Frederick Sound, humpback whales are feeding, perhaps on krill or herring, but what strikes my eye are the beautiful backlit whale blows around us. In the dark rich waters of Southeast Alaska, food abounds and these massive animals migrate from their warm though nutrient poor winter breeding grounds in the Hawaiian Islands north to Southeast Alaska to feast on the abundant small prey species.
Our morning voyage continues to unveil the enormous and changing landscape before us as we head toward the north end of Wrangell Narrows where the village of Petersburg lies. Originally settled by Norwegian immigrants, this seemingly simple town is very important to the Alaskan fishing economy. Commercial crab and fish boats line the waterfront, and many of the purse seiners are loading ice and checking their nets in preparation for a salmon opening on Sunday.
Once alongside the dock, we scatter for varied activities...some folks head off to a small floatplane for a breathtaking overview of the LeConte Glacier while others take a bike ride through town or along the water on a beautiful trail. About half of us choose the boardwalk hike to the muskeg with its unusual plant life adapted to wet and acidic conditions and some prefer to explore this interesting town and its shops and docks on foot. However you choose to explore this very Alaskan –flavored place, it is a delightful and interesting little community surrounded by the vast and beautiful wilderness of the Tongass National Forest.
