Glacier and Wild Life Cruise, Valdez, Alaska

 

What a trip!!!  We have had some wonderful sights on this trip, but I think this is the highlight of our trip.  I was also thinking how fortunate we are to have so many exciting days in such a short time.  I think of all the people who never get to see a fraction of what we have seen in their whole life.

We headed out on the -Valdez Spirit-a large catamaran, the skipper a young woman who not only handled the boat well, but also gave us  outstanding  information on the area, glacier and wild life.  Leaving the boat basin we could see  across the harbor to the facilities that are at the end of the oil pipe line and were the oil is stored waiting to be transported to the lower 48.  Shortly after passing the oil storage facilities  we saw a raft of sea otters.  On the mountains that surround the water are many water falls.  We also saw several bald eagles, but all to far to get pictures. There were salmon jumping all over.  Hope to catch some soon.  We then proceeded to the Columbia Glacier. As we approached it there was a line of small  ice bergs floating in the water.  The skipper of the boat told us that this was unusual to have this much ice floating.  They had not been there the day before, but they were all small and would all thaw within 24 hours.

 

Our boat and the oil facilities. A mountain top sticking out of the clouds and  the little sea otters floating around.  They grow to about six feet long and 100 pounds.  They act like they don’t have a care in the world.

More scenery, seals resting on a buoy and the first sighting of the line of icebergs.  The following pictures are as we approached the Columbia Glacier.  Our skipper  skillfully maneuvered  around  the icebergs bringing us up very  (1/4 mile) close to the glacier. The ice was sculptured into unusual forms.  Also some or the icebergs had riders, the sea otters again.  If you notice the people on the boat had on coats and hats.  It was really cold.

 

 

 

We left the Columbia Glacier and headed on to the Meares Glacier.  I was impressed with the Columbia Glacier but as we rounded the corner and could see the Meares Glacier I was awe struck.  We could hear the ice popping and cracking.  It sounded like a cannon being fired.  We saw a few small chunks of ice calve off the glacier.  The color of the ice is blue as can be seen in some of the pictures.

 

 

We watched the Dall’s Porpoise playing around the bow of the Lu-Lu Belle.  Steller Sea Lions  are pulled out of the water on the rocks resting and making lots of noise.  There were also Horned Puffin swimming and flying around.  We came upon a large pod of Dall’s Porpoise thet swam around the bow of the boat.   They are very fast.  I took many pictures of water and a few with porpoise in them.

 

The high speed ferry headed for Cordova. More mountains and waterfalls.  Islands that caught my attention.  The young woman in the boat had caught a ride with us out to where she works at a fish hatchery located on the shore here.  They raise pink salmon and release them in the Valdez Arm.  The last pictures are us having a good time even if it is cold.

                           

                                                                       

 

If you are enjoying our blog please leave a comment at the bottom.   I hope the next blog is about catching salmon.