Sea Lions and Glaciers and Whales, oh my!

Yesterday the older kids and I embarked on an epic adventure for school, a boat ride along the Kenai Fjords. It was a wonderful experience that I would love to share with all of you. We started out the day rather early, since we had to drive to Seward and arrive by 10:15 am! And ya’ll know how I love my early mornings (in bed, asleep).

Once there, we decided we hadn’t dressed warm enough and layered on anything and everything we could find in the Pearl and I went a picked up gloves for all of us and a headband for myself. Yes, I still occasionally forget to bring everything “just in case”. It is Alaska after all.

Panorama of our cabin mates.

Our group of IDEA homeschoolers gathered together and in the nature of homeschoolers, we sort of boarded in an orderly manner. Well, we all got aboard anyways. I had empathy for the number of passengers aboard who were tourists and not traveling with young children. There were muffled inquiries as to why so many children were on board… Why were these children not in school… Why did you put me on this particular boat… J/K.

The Callisto Voyager.

We boarded our vessel, the Callisto Voyager and settled in for a scenic cruise through Resurrection Bay.

Bear Glacier in the distance.

The weather was a bit dreary, windy and cool at the start but eventually warmed up and became what would be a beautiful day for exploring the fjords.

Our first stop was Bear Glacier. Bear Glacier is very large and part of the Harding Ice Field system. It has a lagoon in front of it with icebergs floating in it. We couldn’t get very close to this glacier so from a distance the ice bergs look quite small. In actuality some were over 80 ft tall.

Next we rounded Aialik (say it with me: eye-Al-ick) cape into Aialik Bay to see, you guessed it, Aialik Glacier. This one was magnificent. We were able to get fairly close to this tidewater glacier, about 1/4 mile from the face. We stayed in this general are for quite some time so we could experiences the sights and sounds of the glacier. They talk to you, groans and pops, sounding like a shotgun blast. You can hear them inching, creeping along the surface. The crew fished a chunk of ice out of the water so all could touch it, examine this piece of living history. The ice that is breaking off is estimated to be around 400 years old.

Aialik Glacier

Glacier Doula

We watched the glacier calve a few times, small chunks, nothing enormous. It happens so quickly and without warning that it was really hard to catch it on film. But I was there, experiencing this moment, silently supporting the massive sheet of ice break off her babies, the glacier doula.

Then we were off again, back out Aialik Bay, and the weather started to turn a bit nasty, winds and waves picking up. We saw a few whale’s blowing in the distance so we headed that way. We eventually came upon a few humpback whales feeding and were blessed to see them come up for breath and dive down again. One young fella put on quite a display for us even flipping his tail up for us. No one breached though. And like the calving glaciers, so difficult to catch on film. But we have the experience forever. I was sitting at the back of the boat with Lil Bit, who after the bumpy ride was feeling a bit green around the gills. She and I got to see the whale show together. Something about sharing such an awe inspiring moment with one of your littles.

Stellar Sea Lions on the rocks.

We stopped at the Steller Sea Lion rookery and observed and listened to the sea lions. So amazing to see these creatures in their natural habitat, outside of the confines of a zoo. It was the first time for me to observe these creatures, and puffins, in the wild. It is such a good feeling to know that my kids get to see these creatures in the wild, and that will be normal to them.

We circled Harbor Island and began our return. There were some major waves and wind. More than a few folks were feeling the effect of the seriously rocking boat.

Glacial moraine on Fox Island.

On our way back into Resurrection Bay we went around Fox Island and got to see a large glacial moraine that has standing dead cedar trees from the great 1964 earthquake. It is quite amazing that these trees are still standing after all this time and all of the weather than they face.

Back to port and a quick group photo-op, then off to a picnic dinner at the park in Seward before heading home.

This was an amazing trip, and one that would not have been possible if not for being offered to our school. I’m so thankful for the opportunity to go and see a part of Alaska that can’t be seen any other way. And what a great experience to share with my Solstice Sisters Moira and Niki!

I’ll post various other pictures for your enjoyment, of course the camera just doesn’t do Nature any justice. Thanks for sharing in our adventure!