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6/16/02 PM Glacier Bay
Father's Day
Today we were in Glacier Bay. The ship stopped at 6:00am and picked up two
park rangers. Beginning at 8:00am one was on the PA system giving a
running commentary on birds, animals, and glaciers. The second ranger was
on a deck giving commentary, spotting birds, and answering questions.
It was cold and windy on the front observation deck. Most people had
gloves and hooded jackets, binoculars and cameras.
When we neared the top/end of the arm of the bay, the wind was low, there
were few clouds, and it was warmer. Mary and I were standing on this front
observation deck for several hours.
The ship sat in front of Margerie Glacier (250 ft tall?) for almost two
hours. Lots of great photo ops.
We saw two eagles on an iceberg; a seal lion on an iceberg, hundreds of
birds near the terminus of the glacier, and several small calvings. Birds
love to be near the calving because of the small fish that are stirred up
during calving.
One of the rangers put on a slide show (in the large lounge) while we were
sailing out of Glacier Bay.
Lunch was a nice barbeque with numerous meats and fishes on the rear deck
of the ship.
At 5:00pm-5:30pm we saw 18 whales, probably feeding in the tide rip where
the current and opposing tide create a turbulent area. A maximum of five
whales were sighted at one time. The other sightings may have been the
same whales going in opposite directions while feeding. The biologist said
she had never seen so many whales in such a short time. The beautiful
weather continues to surprise so many people.
6/17/02 PM At sea Please view the pictures by using the
button links at the top of the page.
Continued on the next page. |
