Day 5, Sept 6 - Ship Cruise at Yakutat Bay and Hubbard Glacier
Day 6 Yakutat Bay and Hubbard Glacier. 4:33
As the ships log says, "Throughout the day, the Grand Princess maintained an easterly course through the 'Gulf of Alaska' bound for Yakutat Bay. We entered Yakutat Bay limits at 2:36pm and proceeded up to 'Hubbard Glacier', where we stopped the vessel and used the thrusters to spin the ship around, letting all passengers see the Glacier. We again left the Yakutat limits at 8:28pm."
We were amazed at the glacier. Six miles wide, 300 feet above water and 200 or so below water at the ocean where it ends. The compacted snow/ice that we were looking at was dropped as snow flakes 76 miles away at North America's second highest peak, Mt. McDonald when the Declaration of Independence was being signed, according to the onboard naturalist's commentary. Everyone talks about the calving of
the glacier, hoping to see a huge chunk fall into the water. Right near the end of our stay it obliged. A chunk or bunch of chunks about the size of a car came hurtling off the glacier into the water creating quite a wave. That was preceded by what could easily be mistaken as a thunder crash as the air bubbles trapped in the glacier swell and explode thanks to the sun's warming rays. Some were so loud and deep and reverberated around the canyon that you were sure there should be a dark storm cloud overhead - but there wasn't!
Someone asked me if we walked on the glacier. No. But even if given the opportunity I'm not sure it would be a good idea. The top of the glacier from our vantage point appeared very jagged and uneven and split with cracks and fishers. It didn't look inviting at all.
One other observation. Whereas up on the tundra nearer to Fairbanks the landscape reminded me just a bit of the Kansas Flint Hills region with huge rolling hills (albeit covered with fireweed and mossy like stuff instead of with grass), the valleys and mountains surrounding the glacier reminded me somewhat of the mountain and valley views we had seen in Glacier National Park a few weeks ago. I guess that shouldn't be surprising given both are glacier fields! It was just plain beautiful and hard to stop looking at.
We were amazed at the glacier. Six miles wide, 300 feet above water and 200 or so below water at the ocean where it ends. The compacted snow/ice that we were looking at was dropped as snow flakes 76 miles away at North America's second highest peak, Mt. McDonald when the Declaration of Independence was being signed, according to the onboard naturalist's commentary. Everyone talks about the calving of
the glacier, hoping to see a huge chunk fall into the water. Right near the end of our stay it obliged. A chunk or bunch of chunks about the size of a car came hurtling off the glacier into the water creating quite a wave. That was preceded by what could easily be mistaken as a thunder crash as the air bubbles trapped in the glacier swell and explode thanks to the sun's warming rays. Some were so loud and deep and reverberated around the canyon that you were sure there should be a dark storm cloud overhead - but there wasn't!
Someone asked me if we walked on the glacier. No. But even if given the opportunity I'm not sure it would be a good idea. The top of the glacier from our vantage point appeared very jagged and uneven and split with cracks and fishers. It didn't look inviting at all.
One other observation. Whereas up on the tundra nearer to Fairbanks the landscape reminded me just a bit of the Kansas Flint Hills region with huge rolling hills (albeit covered with fireweed and mossy like stuff instead of with grass), the valleys and mountains surrounding the glacier reminded me somewhat of the mountain and valley views we had seen in Glacier National Park a few weeks ago. I guess that shouldn't be surprising given both are glacier fields! It was just plain beautiful and hard to stop looking at.