The last day turned into a real “Wow!” This was about as spectacular as Glacier Bay in terms of the scenery. We cruised overnight from Petersburg to a deep fjord, which ended with the Dawes Glacier – this is a very active, enormous, 11 miles long glacier which calves small icebergs into the fjord – these eventually float down to the main channel. The fjord itself is spectacular – a classic deep, u-shaped channel with steep rock walls, and side “hanging” valleys which at one time also had glaciers. It was a glacial geologists dream. And not too shabby for photography.
The adventure for the day was taking groups out in Zodiacs, to view the fjord features, check out the floating ice, and then hang out at the foot of glacier with the hope of seeing some of the glacier crash into the bay (but not too close….large chunks make large splashes and big waves). There were only 6 passengers per boat, so there was plenty of room to move around for taking photo’s. Typical for Nat Geo trips.
We were told to wear multiple layers of clothing – it was a bit nippy cruising around in the morning. Very good advice – this was the coldest morning of the trip for sure. Gloves, hats and windbreakers were mandatory (for me at least). But to make sure that nobody froze while zipping around the ice flows for 90 minutes, Lindblad sent out emergency rations – a Zodiac pulled up after an hour offering hot chocolate with a shot or two of Bailey’s, and whipped cream of course. Yum. They really treated us well on this trip.
I’ll keep this short for a change, and just dump a bunch of photo’s below. I’ve got shots of some really cool icebergs (I just cannot seem to pass on a pun opportunity), the ragged front of the glacier, one of the many waterfalls we passed along the way, and a few other odds and ends. I’ll be adding more to this post once I get home.
Once everyone made it back on board, we were given the opportunity for a polar plunge. The water temperature was in the 40’s. I wear a 1mm wetsuit top when I swim at the club if the temperature is below 78F. Jumping into a giant ice bath did not seem like a good idea. I just stood on the bow and watched as a bunch of passengers and crew members put on a show. It was fun to watch. I’ve got a few months to think about doing one – the Antarctica trip also offers a group polar plunge.
That was the end of outdoor activities for this expedition. There were a few more presentations (two of the naturalists should be stand-up comics), the Nat Geo photographer had put together a nice show of slides submitted by the passengers (four of mine were included), and then most everyone headed to their cabins to finish packing. There was also a group Tango dance on the sun deck, but most everyone passed on that as well. Tango dancing is up there with polar plunges for me.
I’m looking forward to getting home. I need a break from vacationing.
I’ll do one more post with a trip summary, more thoughts on traveling alone….and more photo’s.
And one last thought – as we were getting ready to disembark from the Quest, this monster pulled in behind us. Nope, never going to go on one of those.
The Traveling Widower 