On the way to Tracy Arm, the scenery was very similar to that all along the Inside Passage, but the way this cloud was laying flat on the hilltop caught my eye.
We watched 3 humpback whales around the boat for a few minutes.
The appearance of sea ice told us that we were getting close to the fjord. About a week ago, a huge avalanche of rock crashed into the fjord beside the glacier. This increased to amount of silt in the water giving it an amazing aqua green color.
Our captain got us up close to a couple of waterfalls. Taking a picture through the window of the boat (left) muted the color compared to taking one from out on the deck (right).
Entering the fjord...
The huge avalanche cause a tsunami in the fjord that washed all of the vegetation from the rocky earth above the water line.
Approaching the glacier at the back of fjord were several hundred harbor seals on the sea ice. They haul themselves onto the ice, as it's warmer there than in the water, where they hunt. We got so close to one group that we could see the their whiskers & the texture of their fur.
And finally, we came to the glacier. In the first photo, you can see a bit of the ice field up behind the glacier.
* * * * *
Wildlife sightings (not counting those in the conservation preserve or the aquarium)
--> --> today: 3 humpback whales many harbor seals many sea birds
--> --> trip total so far:
black bears - 25 deer - 14 (12 Sitka) grizzlies - 1 moose - 8
stone sheep - 8 elk - 1 caribou - 15 bison - 42
Dall sheep - 11 porcupines -1 mountain goats - 1 lynx - 1
trumpeter swans - 32+ many bald eagles black oyster catcher - 1 (rare)
sea otters - 27 harbor seals - many, many, many orcas - 1
many sea stars & jelly fish Dall's porpoise - ~ 20
North Pacific Humpback whales - 2 pods of ~ 12 each + 1 + 1 + 3
Stellar's sea lions - many, 100+ incl 60 pups in 1 spot (counted by scientists)
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