I had a fabulous trip to Neets Point from Ketchikan where I got up-close and personal with several Brown Bears, one of which surprised me by suddenly coming through the undergrowth and onto the trail. It was no more than 4 feet away from me and just looked at me as if I was breakfast. Fortunately, the guide came along and told the bear to “get back!” I was amazed when it turned around and went back to the shoreline having obvioisly decided salmon was more tasty than Scotsman!
We sailed into Glacier Bay where there are over 1000 glaciers! Beautiful place, full of wildlife.
At the start of our second cruise, back to Vancouver, we visited the Columbia Glacier. We managed to see quite a bit of wildlife, including Humpback whales, sea otters, Stellar sea lions, seals, bald eagles and puffins! The weather has turned bad again and we are currently heading for the Hubbard glacier in rough seas.
Today is our final port of call on this Viking Orion cruise and we are in Seward, Alaska. All of our guests disembark tomorrow and a new set of guests will board. I am staying onboard to deliver more lectures as we sail back to Vancouver on the return leg. It’s been a great cruise, despite the poor weather.
Our visit to Valdez was interesting as it is the base for the Trans Alaskan Pipleine and quite an interesting town. We visited a couple of the museums and saw a very interesting movie about the 1964 earthquake and how the twon was moved and rebuilt.
Today we sailed into Disenchantment Bay and up to the Hubbard Glacier. We have been here five times before but the weather has never been this bad. It is an amazing sight as you get close and I managed to get a few pictures. You can see the full size images in the gallery.
Today we are in Haines, Alaska. It’s my first time here and we will be visiting the Bald Eagle Sanctuary. Later today I have my second lecture, A journey to the Solar System.
Today we are in Icy Strait Point, Alaska. Our tour today is a cable car ride up the mountain and a Tlingit cultural show. The weather is still a bit grim but we are hardy souls! We have been here four times before and Hoonah, the local town, is a great place to see Bald Eagles. More images to follow.
I am currently on Viking Orion and this morning we docked at Ketchikan, Alaska. On the way in to the port we were lucky enough to see some humpback whales and I was able to get a few quick photos. Feel free to download.
The meteor cameras at Exeter Observatory captured 359 Perseid meteors last night 12/13 August 2024.
