On our first full day aboard National Geographic Quest, we awoke to sun and blue skies as we cruised into Tracy Arm-Fords Terror Wilderness Area. Many of us spent the morning watching for black bears and mountain goats from the bow until we arrived at our destination: South Sawyer Glacier. We hopped into Zodiacs and cruised up to the glacier front, watching massive icebergs calve as we listened to “white thunder” boom through the fjord. Some of us were even greeted by friendly Vikings delivering warm drinks to our Zodiacs. After a successful glacier day, we cruised out of Tracy Arm Fjord admiring the glacial scouring across the rocks and the turquoise waters of this magical place. Today was a great start to our voyage.
7/23/2024
Read
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.