I have Karen with me and not having been ashore in Juneau for 5 weeks, putting one’s feet on dry land is called for. Once a season I try to take the ‘Whale Watch’ tour; seeing these beautiful creatures from the Bridge is wonderful in itself, however getting close and personal on a tour boat takes it to another level. So we joined ‘Allen Marine’s’ boat in Auke Bay, to the north of Juneau and set off for the Favorite (sic) Channel.
This another ‘wind hole’, originating in the high mountains of the Fairweather mountain range, they scream down the Lynn Canal, (on which Skagway lies) and blast through the Sanguenay and Favorite Channels. Our day was no different, northerlies at 30 knots made for a choppy sea, but hey, the sun was shining and all is well with the world.
(Don’t forget, double-click a photo for hi-res)
Leaving Auke Bay, the Juneau Ice fields and the Mendenhall glacier provide a beautiful back-drop
Towering peaks
Eagle glacier
Into the Favorite and the chop starts, however this does not deter the intrepid explorers. 🙂 Whale spouts, drifting away in the wind, can be seen ahead and soon we join a flotilla of whale-watch boats near a pod of feeding humpbacks. Now, as any photographer knows, a good photo is 90% luck and 10% skill, here are some of my 90% luck.
Beautiful tails, as the humpbacks dive to feed
A young calf, frolics continuously, tail-flapping.
And my ‘piece de resistance’, after minutes (which seemed like hours), eye glued to the viewfinder, I was in the right spot and the right time.
Now, let’s see if I can fly……………..
Then on towards Auke Bay once more, passing a buoy along the way.
Basking on a buoy, away from those pesky Orca too….
We leave the boat and catch a bus to Mendenhall glacier, a stone’s throw from Juneau itself.
It is a nature reserve, managed by the NPS and truly beautiful.
The visitors centre
Spawning Sockeye salmon in a nearby stream
Onwards then to Sitka, another glorious day and I went fly-fishing, more on that soon……………
