Bay of Pillars, Frederick Sound, Chatham Strait
This morning, early risers were rewarded with views of about five sea otters as the ship entered Bay of Pillars on Kuiu Island. The bay is shaped like an hourglass and, as the tides ebb and flow, waters in the bottleneck run as swiftly as currents in a fast-moving river. The steep rock walls in the narrowest portion are an ideal place for any plankton feeder able to grip the rocks tightly enough to avoid being swept away. Barnacles, anemones, tubeworms and sponges are ideally suited for life here. Predators also cruise this habitat; snails, sunflower stars and ochre sea stars feast on the hapless plankton feeders.
This morning’s low tide was unusually low, so we had perfect conditions for exploring this wonderful intertidal habitat from Zodiacs. Entering the inner part of the bay, rocks sloped more gently and currents slowed. We observed some solitary minks scampering over the rocks, foraging for a seafood meal at low tide. Some of them were shy and skittish; others were apparently oblivious to our presence.
Later in the morning we went ashore to stretch our legs. Some of us walked up a small creek to a meadow filled with flowers. Chocolate lily – named for its color, and most certainly not for its fragrance (!) – was in bloom, as was Indian paintbrush. As we walked in the forest, we found coral root orchids growing next to the trunks of large hemlock and spruce trees. It was obvious bears lived here; we walked along paths made by bears, and saw bear scat, tracks, and large depressions in the soft forest floor where they had recently slept.
We had a delicious barbecue lunch on deck, ice cream sundaes for dessert, then naps in the glorious sunshine. Dramatic, jagged, snow-capped mountains were the backdrop as we cruised north along Chatham Strait. Lee gave a lecture on Alaskan habitats, and some Dall’s porpoise visited the ship briefly for some bowriding. We were on deck later to view humpback whales. Some of them were underwater for long periods, leading us to assume that they were most likely feeding deep below the surface. As we waited for a 40-ton humpback whale to surface, we were taken by surprise by a rufous hummingbird, which zipped in close for a moment to investigate a bright red hat. Another humpback whale later breached, lobtailed, and slapped its pectoral flipper on the surface. We paused to observe several humpback whales along our passage up Chatham Strait.
This morning, early risers were rewarded with views of about five sea otters as the ship entered Bay of Pillars on Kuiu Island. The bay is shaped like an hourglass and, as the tides ebb and flow, waters in the bottleneck run as swiftly as currents in a fast-moving river. The steep rock walls in the narrowest portion are an ideal place for any plankton feeder able to grip the rocks tightly enough to avoid being swept away. Barnacles, anemones, tubeworms and sponges are ideally suited for life here. Predators also cruise this habitat; snails, sunflower stars and ochre sea stars feast on the hapless plankton feeders.
This morning’s low tide was unusually low, so we had perfect conditions for exploring this wonderful intertidal habitat from Zodiacs. Entering the inner part of the bay, rocks sloped more gently and currents slowed. We observed some solitary minks scampering over the rocks, foraging for a seafood meal at low tide. Some of them were shy and skittish; others were apparently oblivious to our presence.
Later in the morning we went ashore to stretch our legs. Some of us walked up a small creek to a meadow filled with flowers. Chocolate lily – named for its color, and most certainly not for its fragrance (!) – was in bloom, as was Indian paintbrush. As we walked in the forest, we found coral root orchids growing next to the trunks of large hemlock and spruce trees. It was obvious bears lived here; we walked along paths made by bears, and saw bear scat, tracks, and large depressions in the soft forest floor where they had recently slept.
We had a delicious barbecue lunch on deck, ice cream sundaes for dessert, then naps in the glorious sunshine. Dramatic, jagged, snow-capped mountains were the backdrop as we cruised north along Chatham Strait. Lee gave a lecture on Alaskan habitats, and some Dall’s porpoise visited the ship briefly for some bowriding. We were on deck later to view humpback whales. Some of them were underwater for long periods, leading us to assume that they were most likely feeding deep below the surface. As we waited for a 40-ton humpback whale to surface, we were taken by surprise by a rufous hummingbird, which zipped in close for a moment to investigate a bright red hat. Another humpback whale later breached, lobtailed, and slapped its pectoral flipper on the surface. We paused to observe several humpback whales along our passage up Chatham Strait.
