Day 4 : May 30th Tracy's Arm Fjord

May 30th

This morning we awoke to the most magnificent sight. Mountains with tops covered in snow, seemingly jetting out from the sea. The bases covered in fog. The mountains dotted with tall evergreen trees. It was exactly what I wanted to see. I am glad I woke up because now our ship is enveloped by fog. 

Again, coming from Florida and even the Northeast, I've only seen mountains like this on TV. It's cold, cold enough to say that I did not come prepared. John doesn't look prepared either. While the Naturalist says it's 50-degrees, it feels much colder. 

Today as we cruise through a fjord, we will see a glacier. The water here is so calm that it is still except for the wake made by the boat. Ok now for the good part. 

Words cannot describe the feelings I felt yesterday as we cruised through an inlet. It was a feeling I've waited for all my life. I'e been looking for them for a long time. Around 4:15pm we finished playing trivia, when the Naturalist came over the ship's speaker. Whales were spotted at the front of the boat. John and I jumped out of our skins and ran outside. We were on a lower level without our camera or binoculars. Not wanting to miss them, we stayed on the lower desk. Then they came. 

The first spout broke the surface of the water. To someone who doesn't care it wouldn't be anything significant, but it's a whale and everyone loves whales. A free autonomous whale. Humpback whale to be exact and characterized by its small dorsal fin on its lower back and double blow holes. I've studied whales all of my life and never in the wild, which makes the encounter all the more significant. These animals have huge lungs, which allow them to dive and hold their breath for a long time. When they surface to exhale, it's like a geyser letting off steam. That first whale I saw made the whole trip worth it. So much expectation and hope. Then of course we exceeded expectations as the boat was surrounded by whales. Whales breathing, resting, and doing other whale things. I must have seen more than 20 individuals, just enjoying their daily life. The boat turned into a huge whale watching vessel, but it wasn't crowded. 

John and I eventually made our way to the upper decks. We were literally surrounded by these massive beings. One family was resting so close we could see the Barnacles on her nose. It was a mother and her calf just resting at the surface. Part of me was sad that we did not have the camera, but the other part of me knows that the photos would not do the experience justice. So many times we are focused on taking the photo with a good result, that we forget to look. A little splash here or a little mist there. Flukes in the air were tiny, but perfectly captured in my memory. We were exactly where we needed to be. There's still one more set of whales that I need to see in the wild before I feel completely satisfied, but for now I can say that at least we fulfilled the "Whalentee."

Yesterday's dinner was formal and tasted much better than the day before. The trick is to learn what is in the buffet for lunch and not order any remotely similar items. Yesterday's dinner was lobster, which was delicious. John must have looked so disappointed that he finished his that our waiter brought him an entire additional entree, which he also cleared entirely. If I ever get a chance, I'd like to profile the life of a cruise ship worker. It seems that many work on ships to send money home. They feign happiness and are tortured into crowd pleasing tricks. There are 930 crew on board and the may only work on tips. 7 days a week for months on end with very long hours. It must be hard. 

A fjord is a valley carved by the movement of a glacier. A glacier is a huge hunk of ice that grinds it's way through the earth. The snow fills in at the top and the glacier grows. Unfortunately, we're experiencing global warming, so the amount of snow packed on the top does not match the melting period. The water in a fjord is deep, like 1000-feet deep, so a cruise ship can definitely fit. Interestingly, cruise ships hire local pilots who are familiar with the waters to navigate the ships through these treacherous waters. Picking up the pilot is interesting. The boat slows down a little and out of no where a smaller speedy boat matches speed and comes along side the ship. Then they open a side door and the pilot literally jumps ship.

This fjord winds its way 30-miles inland. Each turn seemed to reveal another stunning scene. Another higher peak, another waterfall, another amazing moment. It was also where I saw my first iceberg. When you think iceberg and boat you think Titanic. Luckily we picked up that pilot. A few small bergs hit the side of the boat which sounded like a beat on a large metal drum. Icebergs are so dense that they absorb all light rays except blue, which is what makes them so blue.

We took hundreds of photos during the fjord. Essentially it was a lot of mountain and trees.

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