The moraine of glacial till, dirt, and rock pushed down by the Dawes Glacier hundreds -- if not thousands -- of years ago is called “the bar.” We crossed it aboard National Geographic Quest at 5AM during a down torrent of rain. As the morning wore on, the rain stopped but the tidal flow of ice clogged the channel where our expedition landing craft drivers would take us to the face of the glacier. We paused and wondered at the many waterfalls that lined Tracy Arm, pondering on what it would take in terms of the physical ability to survive in this raw wilderness, as seals spied on us from the cold water.
8/1/2019
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National Geographic Venture
Baranof Island
After exploring the glaciers and open waters of the northern Inside Passage, we sailed south through the night and returned to the starting point of our journey, Baranof Island. This island, along with Admiralty to the east and Chichagof to the north, is home to one of the highest densities of brown bears in the world. To search for evidence of the bears as they begin their yearly salmon feast and continue our exploration of the temperate rainforest, we anchored in Kelp Bay to kayak and hike the shoreline throughout the morning. Later in the afternoon, we welcomed Dr. Andy Szabo of the Alaska Whale Foundation to learn more about ongoing research taking place in Alaska on the unique bubblenet feeding behavior we witnessed earlier in the trip. Only in Alaska can you experience the forest, salmon, bears, and whales all in one day.
