Misty Fiords, Alaska
New Eddystone Rock stood as a sentinel guarding the entrance to Misty Fiords National Monument where we planned to spend our day. This volcanic plug rises 230 feet and was named by Captain George Vancouver for its resemblance to the lighthouse on Eddystone Rock in the English Channel. The customs officers arrived by floatplane to formalize our entry back into the United States, after which we left Punchbowl Cove for Rudyerd Bay. Mountain goats climbed the steep walls high above, while the ship slipped past squiggly-patterned metamorphic rocks and towering granite cliffs that cradled the sheltered waters of this pristine wilderness.
The end of the fiord begged for further exploration, so we set off in Zodiacs and kayaks. The ridge tops here remain covered by winter snow, now melting into a myriad of waterfalls. Zodiacs pressed the shore beneath tumbling cascades and multifingered rivulets such as the one in the photograph. Mergansers, goldeneyes, and harlequin ducks gathered at the mouth of a slow-moving river that emptied its load of sediment and snowmelt into the bay, and mew gulls joined a lone bald eagle that stood sedately on shore. Every now and then a harbor seal poked its head up to take a curious look at the kayaks and rubber boats that plied its watery home. We returned to hot soup and chef’s salads, welcome fare after an active morning.
The afternoon was scenic and relaxing. A video entitled “Around Cape Horn” followed lunch. Afternoon tea guaranteed that we would not go hungry. The Sea Lion traced the route taken by glaciers thousands of years ago, back down the fiord to New Eddystone Rock, passing two bald eagles at their nest on the way.
As we entered more open water, a humpback whale spouted in the distance. While we watched this impressive creature, two Dall’s porpoises raced towards the ship, catching the bow wave for a free ride. These stunning animals are a bold black and white, one of the most beautiful of the world’s porpoises. The humpback arched and raised its flukes for a deeper dive, then the Sea Lion moved on in anticipation of tomorrow’s adventures in Petersburg.
New Eddystone Rock stood as a sentinel guarding the entrance to Misty Fiords National Monument where we planned to spend our day. This volcanic plug rises 230 feet and was named by Captain George Vancouver for its resemblance to the lighthouse on Eddystone Rock in the English Channel. The customs officers arrived by floatplane to formalize our entry back into the United States, after which we left Punchbowl Cove for Rudyerd Bay. Mountain goats climbed the steep walls high above, while the ship slipped past squiggly-patterned metamorphic rocks and towering granite cliffs that cradled the sheltered waters of this pristine wilderness.
The end of the fiord begged for further exploration, so we set off in Zodiacs and kayaks. The ridge tops here remain covered by winter snow, now melting into a myriad of waterfalls. Zodiacs pressed the shore beneath tumbling cascades and multifingered rivulets such as the one in the photograph. Mergansers, goldeneyes, and harlequin ducks gathered at the mouth of a slow-moving river that emptied its load of sediment and snowmelt into the bay, and mew gulls joined a lone bald eagle that stood sedately on shore. Every now and then a harbor seal poked its head up to take a curious look at the kayaks and rubber boats that plied its watery home. We returned to hot soup and chef’s salads, welcome fare after an active morning.
The afternoon was scenic and relaxing. A video entitled “Around Cape Horn” followed lunch. Afternoon tea guaranteed that we would not go hungry. The Sea Lion traced the route taken by glaciers thousands of years ago, back down the fiord to New Eddystone Rock, passing two bald eagles at their nest on the way.
As we entered more open water, a humpback whale spouted in the distance. While we watched this impressive creature, two Dall’s porpoises raced towards the ship, catching the bow wave for a free ride. These stunning animals are a bold black and white, one of the most beautiful of the world’s porpoises. The humpback arched and raised its flukes for a deeper dive, then the Sea Lion moved on in anticipation of tomorrow’s adventures in Petersburg.
