Expedition travel means adjusting to new circumstances, so when original plans fell through, our expedition team came up with alternatives. Soon we were headed off for a morning of kayaking around Thomas Bay just outside the mouth of Cascade Creek.
Each round of guests took the opportunity to explore the coastline of Thomas Bay looking for bald eagles, harbor seals, and much more. The quiet inlet provided a beautiful backdrop for our photo enthusiast guests to snap some picturesque landscape photos as well as the obligatory shots of the National Geographic Sea Bird, from the water’s point of view.
After a delectable lunch made by the always impressive galley team guests prepared themselves for the afternoon of hiking ahead. The aerobic hikers took off into the forest first as their goal was to get as far up the trail as possible in the time allotted. Following them we had our moderate hikers who still desired to go explore far and wide but with a bit more interpretation of the forest environment around them. Our casual hikers split in two groups, one focused on natural history and the other focused on photography.
In the old growth forest of Cascade Creek, one is astounded by the peaceful beauty and sounds of the forest and falls. One of the draws for photographers in the old growth forest is the opportunity to stop and focus on the smaller elements of nature that may not catch the typical hiker’s eye. Tiny mushrooms, mosses, and lichens could entertain a photographer with a macro lens for hours and in this forest, you could find all three in a one square foot parcel of forest. This place was, dare we say, magical!
