It is a challenge to manage one’s expectations when on an expedition. There is always a tension between the desire to be surprised by the joy of serendipity and the yearning for a encounter perhaps longed for for many years. The real magic of expedition-style cruising is when those two forces collide, and we are completely surprised because a dream becomes real.
This morning’s excursion at Pavlof Harbor began in a somewhat routine fashion, with a variety of hikes and expedition landing craft cruises organized to explore the forest and its tidal fringes. Not long after the last cruise left the beach the staff radios crackled with reports of a brown bear foraging along the main trail. Appearing in and out of the low thickets of Sitka alder and wild berries, most of us caught only tantalizing glimpses of a bear that seemed unable to decide between a few uncatchable salmon and the abundant yet unsatisfying greenery. By the end of the first round, the bear had disappeared, presumably to find some privacy.
At the landing beach, hikers were swapping with cruisers for round two. Suddenly, the bear stepped back out of the forest and moseyed towards our assembly. He took his time, snarffling under rocks and grabbing mouthfuls of grass, totally ignoring our whispered gasps of amazement. Soon, more and more people were loading into the boats, and the expedition leader canceled any attempts for round two on land. Our party moved down the water, and still the bear kept coming, walking right past the very spot were just moments ago our lifejackets had been piled. Jaws dropped and camera shutters blazed as an adult brown bear sauntered past our landing with hardly a glance direction.
Those who were scheduled to hike on round two were not disappointed to join the boats as we were able to spend about 20 minutes watching the bear from the safety of the boats. One guest was heard to exclaim, “All I wanted this week was to see a bear up close.” She got her wish this morning.
In the afternoon, a few clouds filled in, (not a surprise) which made perfect weather for our friend Dr. Andy Szabo from the Alaska Whale Foundation to come aboard and give a presentation on humpback whales. Dr. Szabo delivers a perfect blend of scientific fact, field work anecdotes, and entertaining videos from 15 years of research. Andy stayed on board for a hot meal before heading back to his camp.
The day’s finale was an after dinner tour in Red Bluff Bay, a short, narrow fjord just a few hundred meters across with steep cliffs of thick forest and threads of waterfalls etched like exclamation marks at the end of our day of surprises!
