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.
