We awoke at the terminal moraine bar in Holkham Bay at the entrance to Endicott Arm. A light haze hung in the air, creating varying blue layers of hills and mountains around the bay. Humpback whales surfaced and blew in several directions. Clouds above created soft light that brought out the blue in the “bergy bits” (smaller pieces of icebergs) that floated by. We entered a section of the bay where hundreds of surf scoters floated alongside Canada geese, and marbled murrlets bobbed in the calm reflective waters. Bald eagles sat atop ice floes, riding them out in the current and flying off to fish now and then. The bay was a hub of activity this morning! After breakfast, we continued our journey up Endicott Arm towards Dawes Glacier, inside Tracy Arm-Fords Terror Wilderness within the Tongass National Forest. Bits of incredible blue ice floated past us languidly in reflective waters. We stopped within view of the glacier and launched Zodiacs to explore the ice, waterfalls, and amazing geology of this fjord. All of us learned about the geology and natural history of the fjord, and several guests witnessed calving ice off the face of the glacier while others explored beautiful pieces of textured ice.
6/14/2025
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National Geographic Quest
Southeast Alaska
On the last full day of our voyage, we woke in Endicott Arm near the Dawes Glacier. We spent the morning enjoying Zodiac tours to the face of Dawes Glacier and watched multiple calving events. We were also able to spot several harbor seals, waterfalls, and a couple harbor porpoises on the way. After lunch we had the opportunity to participate in a polar plunge. Forty people decided to brave the frigid water for a short swim. Those of us not eager to jump into glacier water were able to watch from the bow. After the polar plunge, we warmed up on board as we started transiting towards Juneau. On the way, we stopped at a beautiful waterfall to once again admire the amazing natural beauty of Alaska. During our farewell recap, we were treated to a quick visit by a humpback whale. We ended our day with a slideshow made up of our favorite photos and memories of an amazing week on board National Geographic Quest .