A chilly Tuesday morning as we made our way up the southern section of the Chatham Straits, with a strong north wind across the decks subsequently chilling us even more, a nice 50°F, 10°C. This is a ‘wind hole’, the cold air off the mountains rushes down the northern strait and whips into the southern section. Typically, once one makes the turn into Frederick Sound, one moves out of the worst of it and this morning is no exception, the wind dropped and calm waters ahead. One could have been on a different planet as we made our way to the pilot boarding point.
Windy South Chatham Straits
Frederick Sound 20 minutes later
Our pilots approach
I had been becoming increasingly frustrated with our attempts to get close to the glacier in Tracy Arm , the Sawyer. Each week, the ice becomes thicker and more awkward to navigate and although very scenic, the purpose of the visit is, after all, to see Sawyer glacier. So this week I decided to go down Endicott Arm. The 2 ‘Arms’ are adjacent to each other, they more or less share their entrances. Both are equally scenic, however Endicott has a final turn and the glacier is 3 miles ahead; even if the ice is thick, one can still see it, as opposed to Sawyer, which can be hidden by cliffs and an island if one can’t get far enough.
A glorious sunny day and off we set, starting with a ‘crawl’ along the meadows on the north side, in the hope of spotting a bear gorging on salmon. The secret is to surprise them, a convenient corner before one reached the meadows and a peek with the binoculars. We were in luck, not 1, not 2 bear, but 4! Going sufficiently slowly, a quick shift to the azipods to put the brakes on and we have them next to us, easily visible with the naked eye.
(Don’t forget, double-click on the photos for hi-res)
Disappearing into the tall grass, but the 2-year old cub seems more intent in his/her salmon in the river.
O look dear , a cruise ship!
Onwards then and a few minutes later, a lone bull Orca, cruising close to the shore, (unfortunately not enough time for a photo).
Weaving through the outstanding scenery.
Sum Dum hanging glacier
Fresh snow on the mountains
Waterfalls
‘Ford’s Terror’ a narrow fjord though which 16-knot rip currents can be experienced.
Mountains ‘ploughed’ by glacial action.
Deep valleys carved by glacial action
Eventually, the final turn and your Captain is a happy ‘bunny’, I am going to be able to show the guests a glacier 🙂
Dawes glacier in all its majesty
Careful to stop and not disturb the seals, crowded on ice-floes
We spend 45 minutes off the face, I manage to swing through 180° so that both sides of the ship, with guests on their balconies, have time to take photographs and then we retrace the 28 miles to the entrance, timing it as the sun is setting and the light fading.
Wonderful sharing your experiences and pictures with us! Our cruise ship will be heading up Tracy Arm. I am hoping this time we may see Dawes Glacier instead. 🙂
Abosolutely gorgeous!!!!
Captain, Thanks as always sharing great photos and commentary. Cheers!
Now that was beautiful, some of your best pictures yet. I hope your guests enjoyed the day. We are lucky to be reading your comments, As a passenger onboard the ship I wonder if they realize what you have done for them? Your blog should be suggested reading for those onboard:)
Please, please, captain, a command repeat performance on the 19Sep15 cruise?
As always beautiful photos!
You, my dear Captain, were not the only happy “bunny” on that ship; I’m sure your passengers were also! This is one of the many things I like about sailing with you; you are innovative and a problem solver. You do not just sail a ship from place to place; you live each and every sailing fully and it shows in what you provide for your passengers. Not only safety, but wonderful experiences such as this. While not on this sailing, I’ve sailed on 2 World Cruises with you and experienced first hand the care you take with each and every aspect of the cruise. If we can’t get in someplace (Rarotonga, Cook Islands!!), you get us into the next stop early. You go out of your way to be sure our trip is as comfortable as you can feasibly make it with the utmost of safety. I do hope that some of your passengers expressed their appreciation with what you did by changing the itinerary and went here instead of attempting Sawyer. I know I would have.