Awestruck by Glaciers in Endicott Arm

Wednesday, June 9

Tuesday afternoon we anchored 5 miles into Endicott Arm in Seaford Cove, one of the loveliest anchorages of our cruise to date.

Under warm sunny skies, and surrounded by snow-capped mountains, Roland and I read in the sun on the upper back deck while Sharon and Jim were up on the bow with binoculars watching eagles.

The next morning we proceeded up Endicott Arm and were struck by how much larger the icebergs were than in Le Conte Bay.

Neither words nor photos can capture the beauty we witnessed in Endicott. We made it all the way up the arm, within less than a mile of the face of Dawes Glacier. The entire arm is lined with fir-covered mountains, granite cliffs and cascading waterfalls of all sizes, shapes and volumes.

The closer we made it to the tip, the denser the ice in the water, and we soon saw groups of harbor seals sunning themselves on the icebergs everywhere, undisturbed by our presence.

The sun was shining, and we put the boat in idle, in complete awe of the quietness, the massive beauty of the glacier, and the sound of nothing but an occasional eagle or waterfall.

Our LeConte glacier ice had melted in the cooler so Roland pulled another large chunk from the water with a lasso, and using hammer and chisel carved pieces to take up to the cooler.

Leaving Endicott we were struck by the image of a lone bald eagle standing atop a huge iceberg.

I finally quit taking photos and just pulled a chair out on the back deck in the sun and soaked in as much as I could … knowing I would forever cherish the unspoiled nature and memories of my day in Endicott Arm.

Trolling for Salmon in Gambier Bay

Tuesday, June 8

After three weeks of cruising, we still hadn’t caught a salmon. Of course … we hadn’t put the tender in and tried.

I was determined before Jim and Sharon left us in Juneau that we were going to at least make an attempt … hoping that if we caught a salmon, I’d have an opportunity to clean one with Jim around to show me how.

We dropped the tender at 7 a.m. Tuesday morning in a small cove just next to Snug Cove in Gambier Bay. We loaded up the fishing gear and by 8:15 Jim and I had the downriggers set up and the hooks down as we trolled for salmon in Gambier Bay.

We were out for an hour and a half of fishing, and headed back to the boat with nothing to show for our work … but a smile.

Pulled up the tender and we headed on to Endicott Arm to see Glaciers.

Seeing Our First Whale Breach … Too Fast for Photos!

Monday, June 7

One thing I’ve discovered about cruising in Alaska … no matter how many whales you see, you never lose interest in watching the flip of that massive tail as they slowly make their dive down into the water.

After enjoying our crabs for dinner on Sunday evening, we left Ideal Cove early Monday and headed up Frederick Sound which is supposed to be prime waters for spotting humpback whales. We saw our first humpback 20 minutes after pulling anchor, but it wasn’t until Tuesday that we were rewarded with the big prize … watching our first whale breach!!!

We had just left Ruth Island Cove and were continuing up Frederick Sound past Petersburg when a pod of humpbacks caught our attention. We put the boat in neutral and snapped photos for about 30 minutes. Just as were ready move on a huge humpback charged up out of the water behind us and as he smacked back down through the water he emitted a loud noise that sounded like a huge fog horn, with a wall of water spraying up around him. We all were in such shock no one was able to catch the breach on camera. Roland and I caught the spray at the end …. And that was about it.

From Humpbacks to the "Man Cave" ....More Photos ...

So many experiences translate into so many photos ...

http://web.me.com/lauragongos/Engelenbak/Alaska_3.html

Our First Crab Catch … in Ideal Cove

Saturday, June 5

We have discovered that often times it’s not hard to decipher why certain bays and coves are named what they are named … and Ideal Bay was no exception.

Ideal Cove is a secluded spot 13.8 miles southeast of Petersburg, across from the entrance to Le Conte Bay … surrounded by pine-covered slopes, topped by Glacier covered mountains … it’s simply ideal.

We dropped anchor at 5:45 pm after a day of dodging ice at Le Conte Bay, and dropped our new 2-beer crab trap. Within 20 minutes it was filled … with a batch of female crabs! By law, the females need to be thrown back in … and that evening, with the exception of one nice large male, females were the only crabs we seemed to attract. Must have been a lesbian crab community!

In the meantime, we decided to take advantage of our “ideal” backdrop. Roland set up the tri-pod on the bow and we timed a group photo. Even Lovie made it into the shot!

Glacier Cosmos & a Shout Out to My Ya Ya’s in Pittsburgh

Saturday, June 5

I couldn’t help thinking of my Ya Ya girlfriends in Pittsburgh tonight – Patty, Anne, Mary Esther, Darla, Helen, Carol & Jodi – many of whom were going to see the new Sex and the City this weekend. I miss you guys!! And can’t wait to hear if you like the movie.

My SATC yearning was further intensified when we anchored in Ideal Cove next to “Cosmos Point.” Roland chipped some ice from the bergie and the boys had bourbon over glacier ice, while Sharon and I made Glacier Cosmopolitans.

I’m not sure if it was my imagination, but it was the BEST cosmo I can ever remember tasting!

Dodging Ice in Le Conte Bay

Saturday, June, 10

Le Conte Glacier in Frederick Sound was our first destination out of Petersburg. It’s the southernmost tidewater glacier in North America, and 2,000 harbor seals reportedly live in the bay and raise their pups on the glacier icebergs.

We were all thrilled when we saw our first piece of glacier ice floating out in Frederick Sound at 12:50 pm before we even made it into the bay. Within minutes we were surrounded by ice – little bergies that had broken from the glacier were everywhere.

We zigzagged our way up to Le Conte Bay, hoping to reach the end so we could see the glacier, but there was just too much ice blocking our way through the last leg. In the meantime, it still was a most spectacular experience.

The azure blue color of the ice was further dramatized by the vast variety of shapes of ice we saw floating by. Sharon saw an iced Donald Duck and Jaws, I saw dolphins and mushrooms,, and Jim saw a Mexican sombrero. I think Roland just saw a minefield of deadly sharp, hard torpedoes his bright new paint job, or worse, put a hole through the hull.

The entire spectacle had Roland and I snapping more than 400 photos, and before leaving the bay, he grabbed a junk of glacier ice to throw in the cooler.