We had a wonderful day! We were able to see an abundance of life in the Inian Islands! Whales came bursting from the sea below. These humpback whales can be up to 60 feet long. The whales push fish towards the shoreline so they can feed. Upwelling from below also pushes rockfish to the surface. Unable to decompress, the fishes’ eyes and bladders bulge, and the fish become food for the Steller sea lions feasting in the waters. The sea lions are all males, bulking up to become larger. Bulls can be up to 2500 pounds and eleven feet long. A series of birds feed on these fish. Bald eagles are the primary feeders. Juveniles have brown heads. As they mature, the feathers on their heads turn white, and their beaks turn yellow. We also saw pigeon guillemots and cormorants. These marine birds swarmed the island, and drifting around the rocks was another endearing surprise. Sea otters! Multiple sea otters were tied together to form what is called a raft. These sea otters have millions of hairs, so many that they do not need blubber or brown adipose fat to keep them warm. Later in the evening, guests entered Dundas Bay for a relaxing and meditative hike. Dundas is part of Glacier Bay National Park. Guests had the chance to kayak and Zodiac as well. During these amazing excursions, the undersea team collected footage that included marvelous views of massive ribbon kelp. The footage played during cocktail hour. Overall, it was an exceptional day!
7/23/2024
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National Geographic Quest
Petersburg
This morning National Geographic Quest arrived at the small fishing town and bustling harbor of Petersburg. Petersburg is among the top 20 fishing ports in the United States and walking and biking around the community we could appreciate the charm of the amazing homes along the waterfront. After breakfast we divided into our different groups based on our activities and explored the town by bicycle, walking to a muskeg bog, climbing Petersburg Mountain, or enjoying cultural tours with some of the locals as guides. Every activity was fun and educational. It felt like we were the only tourists in town, and we really got a sense for small town Alaska. After lunch the rain set in and some of us decided to relax on board while others put on rain gear and enjoyed a Zodiac tour around the harbor, walks, or a bike ride around town. Returning to the ship, we had an incredible presentation by a local resident about Tlingit culture before our recap and amazing Dungeness crab dinner that followed. It was another great day in Southeast Alaska.