Endicot Arm & Dawes Glacier
The majestic Dawes Glacier served as the backdrop for our morning’s activities. As the sun rose, we passed along the shear glacial walls of Endicot Arm, a deep, glacial fjord carved during the last ice age. We neared the imposing 250-foot tall face of Dawes Glacier just before breakfast. After a hearty meal, some of our guests chose to explore part of the bay by kayak. Carefully picking our way at water level through the floating icebergs, we saw swimming harbor seals sneaking glances at us. Overhead, herring and glaucous-winged gulls circled, looking for their next meal, and chased away a juvenile bald eagle that periodically soared across the bay. On the shore, black oystercatchers rested between forays into the water to pry mollusks from the tidal rocks. Later, we had the opportunity to see the Dawes Glacier up close from the safety of our Zodiacs. As we watched, large pieces of ice, many bigger than a house, fell from the face of the glacier into the bay. The “white thunder” from the plunging ice resounded along the water.
Along with watching the Dawes Glacier calving, we observed how plant life quickly established itself on the bare rocks left by the retreating glacier. Endicot Arm provided a time machine from the old-growth forests of Sitka spruce and western hemlock back to the last ice age. After the glaciers retreated, windblown lichens and mosses established a thin mat of organic material on the rocky slopes. Later, alders emerged from the thin soil. As they grew, the alders fixed nitrogen in the soil around their roots. This process provided the nutrients necessary for the larger conifers like spruce and hemlock that surrounded us at the head of Endicot Arm.
In the afternoon, we had the special opportunity to visit Ford’s Terror, a narrow water passage from Endicot Arm to the Brown Glacier. This waterway was named by an American naval officer in the late 19th century after the treacherous currents and standing waves that swept the entrance to the channel as the tides rose and fell. We arrived on a slack tide, and rather than being a terrifying experience, our brief Zodiac ride into the heart of the Tracy Arm-Ford’s Terror Wilderness area was an exhilarating journey into a narrow glacial valley. Giant faults split the cliffs and allowed waterfalls to cascade down the narrow side valleys into the green waters of the fjord (pictured). Arctic terns gracefully flew above us and dove into the placid waters after fish. In all, our final day’s voyage into the wild and wonderful frontier of Southeast Alaska left us with enough fond memories to last a lifetime.
The majestic Dawes Glacier served as the backdrop for our morning’s activities. As the sun rose, we passed along the shear glacial walls of Endicot Arm, a deep, glacial fjord carved during the last ice age. We neared the imposing 250-foot tall face of Dawes Glacier just before breakfast. After a hearty meal, some of our guests chose to explore part of the bay by kayak. Carefully picking our way at water level through the floating icebergs, we saw swimming harbor seals sneaking glances at us. Overhead, herring and glaucous-winged gulls circled, looking for their next meal, and chased away a juvenile bald eagle that periodically soared across the bay. On the shore, black oystercatchers rested between forays into the water to pry mollusks from the tidal rocks. Later, we had the opportunity to see the Dawes Glacier up close from the safety of our Zodiacs. As we watched, large pieces of ice, many bigger than a house, fell from the face of the glacier into the bay. The “white thunder” from the plunging ice resounded along the water.
Along with watching the Dawes Glacier calving, we observed how plant life quickly established itself on the bare rocks left by the retreating glacier. Endicot Arm provided a time machine from the old-growth forests of Sitka spruce and western hemlock back to the last ice age. After the glaciers retreated, windblown lichens and mosses established a thin mat of organic material on the rocky slopes. Later, alders emerged from the thin soil. As they grew, the alders fixed nitrogen in the soil around their roots. This process provided the nutrients necessary for the larger conifers like spruce and hemlock that surrounded us at the head of Endicot Arm.
In the afternoon, we had the special opportunity to visit Ford’s Terror, a narrow water passage from Endicot Arm to the Brown Glacier. This waterway was named by an American naval officer in the late 19th century after the treacherous currents and standing waves that swept the entrance to the channel as the tides rose and fell. We arrived on a slack tide, and rather than being a terrifying experience, our brief Zodiac ride into the heart of the Tracy Arm-Ford’s Terror Wilderness area was an exhilarating journey into a narrow glacial valley. Giant faults split the cliffs and allowed waterfalls to cascade down the narrow side valleys into the green waters of the fjord (pictured). Arctic terns gracefully flew above us and dove into the placid waters after fish. In all, our final day’s voyage into the wild and wonderful frontier of Southeast Alaska left us with enough fond memories to last a lifetime.
