Cruising Glacier Bay - Alaska
You might
watch movies about it, you may hear about it,
you may read about it, but until you partake of it, you
have no clue how thrilling it is to cruise Glacier Bay.
Glacier Bay Mountain ranges with peaks over 10,000 feet,
culminating in 15,320 foot high Mount Fairweather within the
Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve.
Nowhere else in Alaska, or in the world, may you see the
amazing sight of the tidewater glacier that spreads from a
peak 3 miles high down to sea level, that is known as the
Margerie Glacier.
Only 200 years ago, the beautiful fjords and cruising areas
of "Glacier Bay", were buried under ice thousands of feet
thick. In 1794, Capitan George Vancouver viewed
the face of
an enormous glacier at Glacier Bays entrance at Icy Strait.
Naturalist John Muir found in 1879, that the vast ice had
withdrawn an impressive 48 miles up the Bay. Amazingly, by
1916, its face had receded 65 miles all the way back
to the entrance of Tarr Inlet, where it is today.
So, in only 200 many years, these massive glaciers have left
us with the beautiful, 65 mile long bay we enjoy now.
The glaciers on the Bay are extremely active and quite
frequently, you get to hear or see "calving". It occurs
when huge parts of the glacier breaks off and falls crashing
into the Bay.
The calving imitates an explosion, reverberating off the
walls of the glacier, and the ice makes a giant splash as
it smashes into Glacier Bay.
Along with Mother Natures incredible playful artistry of
twinkling icebergs and striking views, you will most definately
be entertained by the plentiful wildlife that call this
section of Alaska their homefront.
Sea otters, sleek sea lions, wolves, moose, black bears,
Alaskan brown bears, puffins, humpback whales, minke
and orca, harbor seals, porpoises, stunning bald eagles,
mountain goats, and an amazing 200 breeds of birds are
a delight to watch.
Puffins are one of the most vibrant birds. They are small
seabirds, pigeon-sized, that live on the open water
throughout the largest part of the year. Except for
breeding.They swim and ride the surface of the ocean all
year long regardless of harsh weather.
From April to mid August they colonize on islands, and
seacoasts to breed. They have black and white feathers and
a vertical, flat, triangular shaped bill which is brightly
colored especially during breeding season.
Whether in awe of the wildlife or breathing in the awesome-
ness of the views, the beauty of Alaska stands out in this
impressive Park.