Tag Archives: glaciers

Natural Wonders of the USA- Part 2

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Natural Wonders

Lets continue with our Natural Wonders List.  Next up

4. North Dakota

And guess what is the Natural Wonder for North Dakota- Theodore Roosevelt National Park. Nice to know I’m on the right track. 

The Theodore Roosevelt National Park in the western part of North Dakota is comprised of three separate badlands which altogether stretches out over 110 square miles. Its  a popular wildlife viewing area which is my interest. So No I haven’t been to North Dakota yet and Theodore Roosevelt National Park is on my list for when I do go. 

Moving on to

5. South Dakota

The Natural Wonder in South Dakota is Custer State Park and yes, I have been there. It’s a really great state park. Not only did we see bison, lots and lots of Bison, we saw mule deer and pronghorn antelope but the most fun were the “Beggin’ Burros”. The burros are wild donkeys that live in a small section of Custer State Park along the road. They are called “begging burros” because they’ve become famous for approaching vehicles and expecting food.

 

Beggin Burro 2011 – Photo credit Deb Neumann

6. Delaware

Number 6 on the list is Delaware and that state’s natural wonder is Brandywine Creek. You may have heard of it because it was a battlefield in the revolutionary war.  We lost that battle but of course we all know that we went on to win the war. Now it’s part of Brandywine Creek State Park. It looks really pretty. 

7. Rhode Island

Rhode Island is another neighboring state, one that I go to often. The Natural Wonder on the list threw me at first. Then I realized it was located on Block Island.. I have been Block Island for a weekend. I was out there to photograph lighthouses. But the Natural Wonder is Mohegan Bluffs. 

Mohegan Bluff- Photo credit Deb Neumann

8. Montana

Another State I’ve yet to visit. The big thing on my list is Going to the Sun Road. Good to know that Going to the Sun Road is part of Glacier National Park so I don’t have to skip one to do the other. Although Glacier is in the name, over the last 12,000 years, the glaciers of Glacier National Park have largely disappeared. While 150 glaciers existed in the mid-19th century, only about 25 exist now. That’s sad but I saw lots of glaciers on my trip to Alaska.

I think that’s enough for this post. 3 states that I need to visit. One done and the Wonder seen. The list will be continued. 

Finally Some Sun

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College Fjord GlaciersThe Land of the Midnight Sun

As we entered Collage Fjord the sun finally came out. The gray, dreary weather that had been following us since we boarded the ship finally cleared. Without the heavy, gray cloud cover we began to see why this land is known as the land of the midnight sun. Even though we were on an early spring cruise sunset at this latitude was still around 10:30 pm.

Midnight sun

What is College Fjord?

College Fjord

Believe it or not, College Fjord was even more spectacular than Glacier Bay. Maybe it was because we had sunlight and blue sky but I think it had more to do with the proximity of the glaciers. There are a lot of them here and the Fjord is more narrow than Glacier Bay. All of the glaciers here are named after a college. This is just a partial list of the glaciers that line the Fjord.

The Wildlife of College Fjord

marine mammalThere was a Naturalist on board for the cruise through College Fjord. We’d just entered the mouth of the Fjord when they announced that we could see mountain goats on the mountain sides. Although I looked like crazy I couldn’t see anything that I could say for sure were animals of any kind. We kept watch for marine mammals like whales and porpoises but only one unidentified animal showed it’s head. 

Whittier just ahead

Our Cruise ship in Whittier

After College Fjord we cruised into Whittier arriving in the morning. As soon as we finished breakfast we were off loaded. Just look at all that snow! Some of our luggage was taken to the Captain Cook hotel in Anchorage to await our return. A smaller bag of necessities for our 3 days in Denali went with us to the train. The cruise portion of our trip was over. 

 

Grand Pacific Glacier

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There was a time, many years ago, when Glacier Bay wasn’t a bay. It was an ice field. The bay was completely covered by miles of ice. As the ice receded the bay was formed and at the head of the bay we now have the spectacular Margerie Glacier.

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But right next to Margerie Glacier, barely noticed because of its spectacular cousin, is a remnant of that Ice field. The Grand Pacific Glacier lies at the very head of the bay to the right of Margerie as you approach. It looks like land. It looks like dirt. It’s a black line as it reaches the shoreline.

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No pretty blue ice for this granddaddy of glaciers but if it weren’t for this dark and unassuming glacier, we wouldn’t have  the Glacier Bay of today.  Back in the 1600’s  the Grand Pacific Glacier made a final surge, tightening its grip on the area. Before its last push was done the valley was filled with up to 4000 ft. of ice. Then it began its retreat leaving the characteristic U-shaped trench which gradually filled with water giving us the spectacular beauty we see today.

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At this time the Grand Pacific Glacier continues to retreat . As it does it grows Glacier Bay a little each day. Prediction are that by 2025 the Bay may extend another 12 miles.

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As we left Glacier Bay we headed into the open waters of Prince Williams Sound. Our Princess Patter said to keep our eyes open for porpoise and other small dolphins but the more open waters of  Prince William Sound also brought more wave action and the good ship Island Princess began to rock a bit. Not too bad but for someone prone to motion sickness enough to send me to my bunk. Sandy was fine but chose to stick close. I think she used the ship laundry while I rested. My case of sea sickness wasn’t severe, just enough to be uncomfortable.

By dinner time most of the discomfort had passed even though we could still feel the ship’s motion more than I expected from a ship her size. Looking out the windows we could see why. The waves were running  4-6 ft.  They were beautiful and mesmerizing but I didn’t trust myself to watch them for too long. I didn’t want to get queasy again as tonight was lobster night. That’s my favorite  dinner on these cruises.

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I haven’t said too much about the food on board but most of the time  it was quite good and there was always food someplace from the Horizon Grill to the Pizza stand to popcorn by the pool. You certainly don’t go hungry.

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The dinners were excellent, for the most part. We had a wonderful scallop dinner one night and of course the lobster and prawns were out of this world. My Beef Medallions one night were very tough and almost inedible which I found surprising and on our last night I chose the “thanksgiving” dinner of roast turkey. The theme was American but it was obvious that the meal could not have been prepared by an American because it was the worst turkey dinner I have ever had. But that was an exception not the rule.

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By tomorrow we would be in College Fjord so the ship should stabilize as the waters there would once more be protected. I am looking forward to that.

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Welcome to Glacier Bay National Park

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And so as we arrive in Glacier Bay, a land reborn, a world returning to life, a living lesson in resilience. If ever we needed a place to intrigue and inspire us, to help us see all that’s possible  in nature and ourselves, this is it. (from the Glacier Bay Brochure issued by the National Park Service)

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Did you know that 250 years ago there was no Glacier Bay? 250 years ago the bay was completely covered by the Grand Pacific Glacier.

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Naturalist John Muir was enamored of Glacier Bay. ” The very thought of this, my first Alaskan Glacier garden, is an exhilaration.”

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As we stood shivering on the deck watching the ship make it’s way through the loose ice, it was easy to share that sentiment. Each berg, no matter the size, was unique and beautiful in its own, cold way.

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The floating ice was getting larger now, an indication that we were nearing the end of the bay where the prize of the Margerie Glacier waited.

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Glacier Bay is not only known for it’s ice, it’s also known for it’s wildlife but so far we hadn’t seen too much, possibly because of the late start to spring this year. But the bay was about to offer a consolation prize. As a particularly large ice floe floated by we spotted a strange looking spot on the ice. Binoculars came out to confirm and sure enough, it wasn’t dirt, it was a bald eagle.

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It stayed right there floating along like Huck Finn on his Mississippi raft until it was out of sight.

About 9:30 we reached our destination, Margerie Glacier and with our arrival  the jockeying for a view with the other 2000 passengers began in earnest.

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Excited calls of  “It’s Calving” mingled with the rangers comments over the PA system. Camera shutters clicked and no one wanted to miss a moment. People were crawling under the railings to get a tiny sliver of unobstructed view for their cameras to peek through.

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I confess my frustration level was growing as I am sure was the case for many others. Those big blue screens may cut the wind but they are really in the way for pictures. Cold and (I confess) a little irritated we decided to go back down to our stateroom and see if we could see anything from our balcony.

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Hit me upside the head for my stupidity! Here was the real view and we didn’t have to share with anyone else. Plus we were protected from the wind so it wasn’t as cold. Thank you Island Princess for the balcony upgrade.

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We sat in comfort and snapped pictures to our hearts content. I did see the glacier calve once. I didn’t even try to catch a picture as I was just too much in awe. Although we wasted 45 minutes or so topside we still had a good 30 minutes before the captain swung the ship around so the starboard side balconies could have their turn.

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Lesson learned…check the view from your balcony and avoid the crowds!

Glacier Bay

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This is the post I’m sure you’ve all been waiting for and I have so much for show and tell. Glacier Bay Cruising is a highlight of many, many cruise lines for their Alaska trips. I admit we were really looking forward to seeing it. Mendenhall Glacier had only served to whet our appetites for more.

Skagway to Glacier Bay            113 nautical miles           11.5 knots

The Island Princess entered Glacier Bay from Icy Strait named for the multitude of ice bergs the first explorers found floating here. The Island Princess was selling tickets to “The Sanctuary” an adult only area of the ship. The Sanctuary has padded lounge chairs, “Serenity Stewards” to wait on you, blankets and Mimosas all for only $60.00 per person. The Sanctuary is located across the aft end of the ship.

Alaska2013 464 copyThe misty, cold, gray weather that had followed us so far continued to be with us as we entered Glacier Bay. We decided not to spend the money for the Sanctuary because of the weather. Even with blankets it seemed like we’d be warmer if we could keep moving around the deck. We learned later that we missed out on seeing a close up view of a pod of Orcas that frolicked in the wake. Maybe next time I’ll make a different decision. It’s also important to mention here that although Alaska in the spring is known for its rainy weather, we were experiencing much colder, wetter weather than is the norm. Everyone says spring is running about 2 weeks late. Just our luck! 🙁 But that means that you shouldn’t be discouraged about a late May cruise…next year could be glorious sunshine.

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The Island Princess arrived off Bartlett Cove, Glacier Bay around 6 am where they picked up National Park Rangers. They set up a table neat the Horizon Court on Deck 14 plus they made announcements on the PA describing what we were seeing as we slowly cruised the bay.

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I say slowly cruised the bay because Island Princess was moving through an ice field of bergs and small ice floes.

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These bergs are a good indication that the glaciers are actively calving. Most of the bergs were pretty small or at least looked that way from 150 ft. up. I wonder if the people on the Titanic said the same thing…Oh they’re just little ice bergs. 🙂

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The ice didn’t just drift out of the way. We could hear the bergs hitting the hull before they drifted off or slid down the sides.

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Once again I can say it was cold especially when we leaning on the railing to see around other passengers or to avoid the annoying blue windows.

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The closer we got to the Margerie Glacier the more the anticipation grew. People didn’t pay any attention to the many smaller glaciers that we passed as we traveled further into the bay.

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