Yesterday we embarked National Geographic Sea Bird to start our adventure towards Alaska. We traveled 120 miles overnight from Seattle, passing through the Rosaria Strait, to awaken in the calm waters of the Strait of Georgia just east of Vancouver Island. We enjoyed several orientation briefings with our Expedition Leader Rab Cummings, who prepared us for our adventures up north. All the while our eager eyes are keeping watch for wildlife in these bountiful waters.
9/22/2024
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National Geographic Sea Lion
Inside Passage, British Columbia, Canada
We awoke this morning in the calm protected waters of the Inside Passage in British Columbia. These narrow passages are protected by the numerous islands buttressing the wild coastline; we quietly passed through the misty temperate rainforest on these rich marine channels as the eagles, gulls, shorebirds, and waterfowl barely acknowledged our intrusion. Our morning aboard, however, was busy with a variety of activities and presentations, interspersed with time to soak in the mysterious misty landscape. In the afternoon we had tours in our expedition landing craft through the Jackson Narrows Marine Reserve, where small streams poured out of the dark, green forest. Cedars, hemlocks, spruces and alders overhung the banks, the lush verdant growth starkly clinging in a thin organic layer to the exposed gray granodiorite rocks. The presence of numerous bald eagles and glaucous-winged gulls gave away the presence of spawning salmon in the narrow creek mouths. The brown-stained waters emphasized the intimate connection of the forest and the marine landscape surrounding us.