Petersburg, AK and Frederick Sound
From Petersburg down to Frederick Sound, today we tasted the best of what Alaska has to offer. Even the weather obliged us, displaying all of its elements, first offering us liquid sunshine, followed by furtive fog, and finally settling on bright sunshine. In the fishing town of Petersburg, we took Zodiacs across Wrangell Narrows to explore a bog habitat. Upon return, we set off to explore the community – the heart of which many would say is not actually the downtown, but amongst the various fishing vessels along the docks. Every kind of craft from longliners, gillnetters, seiners and crabbers were in various stages of preparation for the summer season: fisherman baiting hooks, checking gear, and painting hulls.
Casting off from the dock, we made our way north into Frederick Sound in hopes of meeting up with humpback whales. After some time of cruising and scanning, we were rewarded with several close encounters with these magnificent marine mammals. Joining the naturalists on the bow, we honed our whale-watching skills, learning how to distinguish fluke patterns and feeding behaviors. We listened as words like “tubercles” and “rorquols” came from Liz, Lee, and Steve; we rolled the new vocabulary around on our tongues, quickly growing familiar with the humpbacks and their unique traits.
All the facts, theories, and fancy words used to describe the humpbacks, however, could not compete with the powerful, exploding “Whoosh!” of air expelled from the whales, and the excitement we felt as one humpback surfaced closer and closer to the Sea Lion. We were glued to the bow, leaning as far over the edge as we could, holding our breath, exhaling in unison with the whale as each breath brought this creature closer to us.
Eventually, we left the whales to continue their feedings, and we headed into the dining room to enjoy a feast of our own – Dungess crab and baby back ribs. With the last bit of sunlight shining on the snowcapped mountains, we navigated narrow North Passage and tucked into Elizah Harbor on the southern tip of Admiralty Island.
Even still, with the light fading, we are on the bow watching a mother brown bear with her two cubs forage in a meadow…
From Petersburg down to Frederick Sound, today we tasted the best of what Alaska has to offer. Even the weather obliged us, displaying all of its elements, first offering us liquid sunshine, followed by furtive fog, and finally settling on bright sunshine. In the fishing town of Petersburg, we took Zodiacs across Wrangell Narrows to explore a bog habitat. Upon return, we set off to explore the community – the heart of which many would say is not actually the downtown, but amongst the various fishing vessels along the docks. Every kind of craft from longliners, gillnetters, seiners and crabbers were in various stages of preparation for the summer season: fisherman baiting hooks, checking gear, and painting hulls.
Casting off from the dock, we made our way north into Frederick Sound in hopes of meeting up with humpback whales. After some time of cruising and scanning, we were rewarded with several close encounters with these magnificent marine mammals. Joining the naturalists on the bow, we honed our whale-watching skills, learning how to distinguish fluke patterns and feeding behaviors. We listened as words like “tubercles” and “rorquols” came from Liz, Lee, and Steve; we rolled the new vocabulary around on our tongues, quickly growing familiar with the humpbacks and their unique traits.
All the facts, theories, and fancy words used to describe the humpbacks, however, could not compete with the powerful, exploding “Whoosh!” of air expelled from the whales, and the excitement we felt as one humpback surfaced closer and closer to the Sea Lion. We were glued to the bow, leaning as far over the edge as we could, holding our breath, exhaling in unison with the whale as each breath brought this creature closer to us.
Eventually, we left the whales to continue their feedings, and we headed into the dining room to enjoy a feast of our own – Dungess crab and baby back ribs. With the last bit of sunlight shining on the snowcapped mountains, we navigated narrow North Passage and tucked into Elizah Harbor on the southern tip of Admiralty Island.
Even still, with the light fading, we are on the bow watching a mother brown bear with her two cubs forage in a meadow…
