Seward

Our best single-day Alaska experience thus far was the 9 hr. glacier and wildlife viewing cruise in Resurrection Bay out of Seward. I use the term cruise as a verb - what the small excursion boat with 34 passengers did - vs. cruise ship touring. Our trip took place under overcast skies with occasional sun breaks - a good Alaska day here on the Kenai Peninsula.

We were enchanted by the diversity of sea mammals encountered - Orca (killer) and Humpback whales (one Orca did a full breach out of the water); Stellar Sea Lions sunning on rocks in their traditional hauling-out spots along the coastline; Dall’s Porpoise (speedy wake riders who look a lot like orcas in coloring); the always adorable Sea Otters; and Harbor Seals floating on glacial ice flows where they were pupping. Our captain had a special passion for Orca and brought his personal hydrophone enabling us to listen to several pod’s unique vocalizations by which, in addition to the subtle differences in dorsal fin characteristics, he was able to identify each of three matriarchal groups we encountered.

Seabirds were another delight - Tufted and Horned Puffins, Cormorants, Mures, Kittiwakes and Gulls. A special bonus was a chance to watch two Coastal Mountain Goats grazing, meandering and finally lounging high on the cliffs above us. There were, of course two regal Bald Eagles - not so many as in Homer. The scenery was equally as magnificent - snow capped mountains on either side of the bay, many glittering with gushing waterfalls of spring run off, some a quarter of a mile in length as they coursed down the mountains; glimpses of the vast Harding ice field (about the size of Rhode Island) high above and a few of the many fiords and sand bars it’s glaciers have carved over the millennia; then the awesome glaciers themselves, most with blue- tinged areas marking recently “calved” icebergs where the electric blue-reflecting inner layers of dense, ancient ice is exposed; all this in contrast to the varied shades of sea and sky, the new greening leaves and shifting cloud cover. Awesome.

We camped two days near landlocked Exit Glacier to which one can easily hike and even touch. It was a lovely campground with few guests. Food preparation and storage areas were several hundred feet from campsites as a bear precaution. Black bears were sighted while we were there, but not by us. The temperatures were in low 30's at night which was OK but the rain on the second night made packing up unpleasant. I was grateful, however, that the rain had stopped by morning. Now it’s back at work 8:30-5:00 four days/week until our next three-day adventure! We'll keep you posted!