Overnight, National Geographic Sea Lion brought us through Frederick Sound from Tracy Arm-Fords Terror Wilderness to the town of Petersburg, Alaska. We spent the morning exploring the historic town with our cameras, and some guests took a trail through the misty temperate rainforest to visit a muskeg. We boarded the ship in the afternoon and headed south, enjoying the scenery in Wrangell Narrows as we cruised along looking for wildlife. Later in the afternoon, naturalist Bette Lu Krause gave a wonderful talk about her time as a young woman on the high seas travelling the world as a merchant marine. In the evening, just as we were about to sit for dinner, we got a visit from a pod of killer whales! Everyone enjoyed sunset on the bow as we watched these incredible mammals. After some time enjoying their company, we were beckoned back to the dining room for crab night—a crowd favorite—and capped off the evening with a very humorous and insightful talk about the life cycle of salmon by naturalist Luke Manson.
9/5/2024
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National Geographic Sea Bird
Glacier Bay National Park, Southeast Alaska
“Glacier Bay Day” is a naturalist’s delight, with its beautiful landscapes, plentiful wildlife, and the majesty of the wilderness. I spent much of the day on the bow, scouring my surroundings for creatures great and small with guests, staff, and crew alike. The day began with views of Lamplugh and Johns Hopkins Glaciers, the latter of which provided ample views of calving and harbor seals. As we continued our cruise through the bay, we were treated to glimpses of bald eagles, red throated loons, and harlequin ducks who flew in front of our bow. Terrestrial wildlife had their moment at Gloomy Knob, where well over a dozen mountain goats roamed the cliffside and four brown bears lumbered through the alluvial plains of the park. I considered the day’s highlight to be our evening cruise past South Marble Island. Tufted puffins, common murres, pelagic cormorants, and gulls of various clades took to the skies while sea otters, Steller sea lions, and a lone humpback whale provided an epic aquatic display.