CRUISE WEST TRAVELOGUE NO. 8
SPIRIT OF YORKTOWN
GOLD RUSH INSIDE PASSAGE – JUNEAU TO SEATTLE
August 15, 2010 to August 25, 2010
FIVE FINGER ISLAND LIGHTHOUSE & PETERSBURG
Thus far on our cruise, we felt we have truly been blessed with unbelievable gorgeous weather and incredible memories. When I woke early again this morning, I had no idea what an incredible day was about to unfold before us. We wandered downstairs to the lounge before 6:30 a.m. when Alyssa quietly woke up the passengers of The Yorktown saying “Good morning Yorktown – it is now 6:30 a.m. and this is your wake up call. Come out on deck as soon as you can as we are amongst a pod of humpback whales.” Within minutes the lounge filled with passengers and their cameras. The incredible experience we were about to have was nothing short of a miracle and truly a blessing.
As we approached Five Finger Lighthouse we began to see a lot of humpback whales spouting and blowing in the distance. The further we traveled, the closer they came and within a short few minutes, we were amongst a pod of about 18 humpback whales ready to put on a fabulous show for us! We weren’t sure where to look for fear of missing something that was happening. On one side of the Yorktown five or six humpbacks would surface and blow then bellow amazing noises much like elephants, and then as if that was their cue, they would each hump their backs dramatically and up came those gorgeous tails! The Captain stopped the ship and we stayed there for over an hour or more. There were whales breaching off behind the ship and off the starboard side. There were whales right in front and right beside us. The cameras were just clicking as fast as they could and all of the passengers were gasping and clapping and yelling in joy at the fabulous performance.
Yes, we had an incredible experience on our Photo Safari by Land & Sea in Juneau and had seen humpbacks and orcas, but not this many! This was one of the most memorable experiences for us and we are so lucky to have been in that area at that time. And Alyssa, well, she was beyond excited – she was just plain ecstatic! She did not stop smiling for the rest of the cruise!
We finally had to leave the area, but not before the whales breached in the distance and said good-bye to us. We continued on in to Petersburg, Alaska; but soon became aware that we were traveling quite slowly. An announcement was made that we were having engine trouble and only had the use of one engine. Several minutes later, a large black and yellow tug boat appeared on our stern and began following us very closely. No announcements were made and we thought it was just protocol for a tug to guide you into Petersburg because it was such a small town
Petersburg, Alaska is on the northern tip of Mitkof Island and has a strong Norwegian heritage. It was founded in 1897 by a Norwegian fisherman named Peter Buschmann and his son August. The population of Petersburg is only about 3,200. As we disembarked the Yorktown the majority of the passengers were directed to buses that took them into the town to enjoy a traditional dance at the Sons of Norway Hall. Not only did they have a nice tour of the small, quaint town, but they were also served some traditional and decadent Norwegian pastries.
Those of us who had signed up for the jet boat excursion to LeConte Glacier (about 24 in all) were directed to two small buses and driven down about two blocks from where the ship was docked to another dock where we boarded our jet boats. The jet boats had an enclosed area where we all sat comfortably and listened to our guide, a history teacher, tell us about the area and what we were about to see. The LeConte Glacier is the southernmost glacier in Alaska.
As we traveled across Wrangell Narrows, we were told that this area is only accessible for smaller cruise vessels and the Alaska state ferries. Petersburg has the largest halibut fishing fleet in Southeast Alaska; and so you see many fishing boats on the waters here. When we left Petersburg we headed east towards the mainland. The closer we got to LeConte Bay the more icebergs we saw. These icebergs were larger and much deeper colors of blue than any other glacial ice we have seen before. Some of the “bergs” were seemingly carved out from where they were in the water and appeared to almost look like mushrooms. Because there is a shelf of glacial soot at the entrance to LeConte Bay, the glaciers get hung up there; so there is a big accumulation of icebergs in this area. The shelf is shallow; and with only 10% of the glacier being above the water, the majority of the mass is underwater and gets stuck on this shallow shelf.
After having been to Glacier Bay and Tracy Arm Fjord to visit the Sawyer Glacier, we had no idea what a treat we were about to experience. The further we traveled down the narrow inlet, the more icebergs appeared. There were small ones and there were some that were almost a hundred feet tall. Some of them appeared to be two separate icebergs – one of top of the other – the bottom being smoother and rounded; and the one perched on top was rectangular and just resting there.
At one point on our journey back to our ultimate destination of LeConte Glacier, we passed aquamarine colored icebergs with dozens of harbor seals resting on top of them. Our jet boat got so close that we could look right into their eyes and see the beautiful patterns of their skins from ones that almost looked like leopard skins to solid colors and everything in between. One even decided to slide down the iceberg he was on and dive into the icy waters when we got close! I’ve never been so close to marine wildlife as this - Not even at Sea World!
Seeing the harbor seals so close was amazing, but when we finally arrived at LeConte Glacier, we all just stood there for a moment on the rear of the boat and just gasped. We were about 150 yards from the face of the glacier and among thousands of small icebergs. Up on one of the mountains to our port (left) side were mountain goats grazing. As we looked into a valley off the starboard (right) side we were told we were looking into a small valley that had been described as the Yosemite of Alaska.
We got to stay at the glacier for almost an hour and a half; and during that time, we witnessed several calvings.
We were so close, that when the glacier calved, we could feel the ripple of the water as the waves moved across the small bay. The deep colors of blue in the glacier were stunning. At one point, I almost felt like I was Superman on his planet Krypton with all the ice spires and columns before me. We could hear the glacier crack and moan. LeConte Glacier moves forward at the rate of 3 feet an hour – so there is a lot of calving. Our guide brings his students up here once a year to take measurements and to record the glacier activity. LeConte Glacier sometimes recedes, but other times it grows. There is approximately 100 feet of snow that falls on the ice field.
We knew our time here was limited – but we were all thrilled to have been able to see such a magnificent glacier and all of the wildlife up so close. When we arrived back in Petersburg, our bus driver took us on a quick tour of the quaint city to show us a few landmarks – and then dropped us off at the dock to board the ship.
As The Yorktown left Petersburg we headed into the Wrangell Narrows towards our next destination, the small native town of Metlakatla.
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