We couldn’t have asked for a better ending…today was an absolutely amazing day out in Southeast Alaska, with non-stop action from start to finish. We woke up to a beautiful cruise up Endicott Arm towards the Dawes Glacier, with great views of the massive fjord walls surrounding us and bits of ice floating past as we made our way up towards the glacier. It’s calving season for the harbor seals, which often take refuge on drifting ice, so we were fortunate to spot several mothers with their pups along the way. Once we arrived at the glacier, we went out on expedition landing craft cruises and were able to approach within a quarter of a mile of the glacier. In the diffuse morning light, the ice was glowing in brilliant shades of blue, an unbelievable sight and spectacular for photography. Speckled along the bits of floating ice were mother harbor seals with their pups, another beautiful sight while exploring the fjord by expedition landing craft.
In the afternoon, we were fortunate enough to catch the tides right to be able to adventure up through Ford’s Terror—an exciting inlet just a few miles from our morning excursion by Dawes Glacier. Ford’s Terror was aptly named so because, if caught at the right time, the passageway through the narrow inlet flows with incredible force as the tides come gushing by. Our timing was perfect, and we arrived just at slack tide…the only feasible time of day to make the crossing. After an amazing afternoon cruising around Fords Terror, a few brave souls participated in the “polar plunge,” a tradition of jumping in the icy cold Alaskan waters.
To finish off this spectacular day, just before sunset we spotted two bald eagles sitting on an iceberg. We were able to pull up close to the berg and get amazing views, providing the most incredible end to another remarkable day in Southeast Alaska.
