LeConte Bay—Petersburg
Our morning began on the misty waters of LeConte Bay, surrounded by blue ice. The LeConte Glacier has one of the highest flow rates of any glacier in North America, so calving in frequent. The ice floats about 7 miles down the fjord and accumulates here behind a terminal moraine that was deposited around 1750AD, before a major retreat similar to Glacier Bay. In the middle of breakfast we had abrupt but very welcome interruption— killer whales! We rushed to the deck to find at least six animals making their way through the ice. It wasn’t clear whether this was an unusually large group of transient whales seeking a meal of harbor seals or a small part of one of the resident pods who eat only fish. The seals apparently were betting on the former, because they were conspicuously absent, except for one that was left behind. As the killer whales swam nearby, he cowered behind a bergy bit lying very low and very quiet--and he survived.
After leaving LeConte Bay, we did a rendezvous at sea with Fred Sharpe, one of the premier whale researchers in Alaska. His lecture on board included some fabulous images of humpback whales along with a fascinating explanation of the behavior of these magnificent creatures. Fred is one of the principals of the Alaska Whale Foundation that has received major funding from Lindblad guests and has been a key player in the scientific study of cooperative bubble net feeding.
Our afternoon was spent in Petersburg, a genuine fishing community that has not yet succumbed to the lure of tourism. There are two or three shops that cater to tourists, but the biggest store in town sells hardware and the second biggest is a general store that has just about everything that a tourist wouldn’t be hoping to buy. A clue to the heritage of Petersburg is a replica of a Viking ship near the harbor in front of the Sons of Norway hall. Norwegian fisher folk founded this town and still prevail in its culture. Where else in Alaska could you find lutefisk and lefska at the local café? Just across the channel from Petersburg we did a wonderful hike that starts in a classic temperate rainforest and follows a boardwalk upslope to one of the best muskeg bogs in Southeast Alaska. Here we found unique plants, such as the bog orchid and the carnivorous sundew that eats flies to get the hard-won nutrients necessary for survival in this harsh environment that features water with a pH of 4.5 or less.
Our evening ended with a feast! Baby-back ribs, slaw, risotto, and Dungeness Crab--so fresh that it had been hauled from the water only hours before being served. Just another routine day in Southeast Alaska aboard the Sea Lion.
Our morning began on the misty waters of LeConte Bay, surrounded by blue ice. The LeConte Glacier has one of the highest flow rates of any glacier in North America, so calving in frequent. The ice floats about 7 miles down the fjord and accumulates here behind a terminal moraine that was deposited around 1750AD, before a major retreat similar to Glacier Bay. In the middle of breakfast we had abrupt but very welcome interruption— killer whales! We rushed to the deck to find at least six animals making their way through the ice. It wasn’t clear whether this was an unusually large group of transient whales seeking a meal of harbor seals or a small part of one of the resident pods who eat only fish. The seals apparently were betting on the former, because they were conspicuously absent, except for one that was left behind. As the killer whales swam nearby, he cowered behind a bergy bit lying very low and very quiet--and he survived.
After leaving LeConte Bay, we did a rendezvous at sea with Fred Sharpe, one of the premier whale researchers in Alaska. His lecture on board included some fabulous images of humpback whales along with a fascinating explanation of the behavior of these magnificent creatures. Fred is one of the principals of the Alaska Whale Foundation that has received major funding from Lindblad guests and has been a key player in the scientific study of cooperative bubble net feeding.
Our afternoon was spent in Petersburg, a genuine fishing community that has not yet succumbed to the lure of tourism. There are two or three shops that cater to tourists, but the biggest store in town sells hardware and the second biggest is a general store that has just about everything that a tourist wouldn’t be hoping to buy. A clue to the heritage of Petersburg is a replica of a Viking ship near the harbor in front of the Sons of Norway hall. Norwegian fisher folk founded this town and still prevail in its culture. Where else in Alaska could you find lutefisk and lefska at the local café? Just across the channel from Petersburg we did a wonderful hike that starts in a classic temperate rainforest and follows a boardwalk upslope to one of the best muskeg bogs in Southeast Alaska. Here we found unique plants, such as the bog orchid and the carnivorous sundew that eats flies to get the hard-won nutrients necessary for survival in this harsh environment that features water with a pH of 4.5 or less.
Our evening ended with a feast! Baby-back ribs, slaw, risotto, and Dungeness Crab--so fresh that it had been hauled from the water only hours before being served. Just another routine day in Southeast Alaska aboard the Sea Lion.
