Chatham Strait, Southeast Alaska
Yesterday afternoon we boarded the National Geographic Sea Bird in Sitka to begin our exploration of the islands and waterways of Southeast Alaska. During the evening, we passed through Peril Strait, a narrow passage that separates Baranof and Chichigof Islands, to enter Chatham Strait, the major north-south channel of Southeast Alaska. Admiralty Island, the third of the "ABC Islands" of Southeast Alaska, lies across Chatham Strait. The small size and shallow draft of our ship allows us to enter small bays and coves that are inaccessible to larger ships. This morning it was Red Bluff Bay that welcomed us. What could be better than a steaming mug of morning coffee and a warm, fresh pastry taken on the foredeck of the National Geographic Sea Bird? Our ship nosed close to a beautiful Alaskan waterfall coursing down from the last of the winter snow still melting in the mountains that rose steeply above us. Departing Red Bluff Bay, we had our first encounter of the trip with humpback whales - a female with her young calf, born just last winter in the warm water of Hawaii.
We proceeded northward up Chatham Strait to Kelp Bay for our afternoon activities. Our fleet of colorful kayaks hit the beach, and we settled in to paddle serenely around the cove. We also landed on the nearby shore of a coastal meadow for walks through the rich and diverse vegetation. A prime attraction was the abundance of colorful and tasty berries - salmonberry on taller bushes, and arctic bramble growing just above the ground. The berries are just reaching their peak of delectable ripeness - delectable to us and, judging from the signs of their recent presence, to brown bears as well. We kept a sharp eye, and during the second round of hikes, the radios crackled with news that a sow and her young cub had just walked onto the meadow rather close to our landing site. Discretion prevailed, and we gave up the landing and the berries to the bears. Mother and cub were easily seen from our departing Zodiacs and from the ship, and shortly the bears were exploring where, just minutes before, we had been walking.
In the evening we crossed Chatham Strait to the Admiralty Island side in search of humpback whales, and we certainly found them. In the fading light (after all, it was 10:30 in the evening) we watched the whales busily feeding. (Hawaii is for breeding; Alaska is for feeding.) After a series of breaths at the surface, the whales descended, throwing their flukes into the air to direct their massive bodies downward. Their prey must have been close to the surface, for the whales returned to the surface with their throat pleats expanded by the huge quantity of water they had engulfed, and from this they filtered their food. As the evening light faded into darkness, we were enthralled by the sights, the sounds, and the smells of wild Alaska, and anxious to see what tomorrow will bring.
