Tracy Arm-Fords Terror Wilderness
After traveling all night through Steven’s Passage, the National Geographic Sea Lion entered Tracy Arm around 6:00 a.m., heading for the site of our morning activity. This 30-mile-long fjord is part of the Tracy Arm - Ford’s Terror Wilderness area, which covers 635,000 acres of the Tongass National Forest in Southeast Alaska. The activity was to be kayaking among some icebergs, in the middle of a wider area of the fjord called the “S” curve.
The day began with little or no wind, clearing skies, and the promise of things to come. As we traveled deeper into Tracy Arm, the captain decided to give us a dramatic pre-breakfast show by pulling right up to a towering waterfall called Hole-in-the-Wall. Everywhere you looked there was spectacular scenery, sheer cliffs and lacy waterfalls that make this fjord a very special destination. This amazing landscape was carved by massive glaciers, and is one of the best examples of a glacially-carved fjord that we see in Alaska, or anywhere for that matter!
Soon after breakfast the Sea Lion arrived at our destination, and we started unloading kayaks and Zodiacs in preparation for two rounds of paddling through this amazing wilderness area. The weather remained good, but a little on the cool side. This, however, did not seem to bother anyone, and there were lots of smiles as our paddlers returned to the ship.
As soon as all the gear was loaded back onboard, the Sea Lion headed deeper into the arm to a place near the South Sawyer Glacier, where the afternoon Zodiac cruises would take place. At 2:00 p.m. the first boat, filled with excited guests, left the ship to explore the icebergs, waterfalls and of course get a closer look at South Sawyer. There were thousands of icebergs, bergy-bits and growlers of all shapes and sizes. And, as a bonus, we had hundreds of harbor seals either swimming around the ice, or hauled out on top of some of the flatter pieces. Even though the weather seemed to be changing for the worse, everyone loved the experience of exploring this magical place in a small craft, at water level!
All good things must end, and so, as the last Zodiac was loaded back onboard, the Sea Lion turned away from South Sawyer and started its return back down Tracy Arm, slowly saying goodbye to this very special wilderness area!