Alaska 2017
TRACY ARM, NORTH SAWYER GLACIER
DAY 2 : SUNDAY SEPT 24, 2017
For our first day out, we bundled up against the chilly, damp weather and headed up Tracy Arm, a fjord which is over 30 miles (48 km) long and is lined by massive, steep cliffs and plunging waterfalls. This fjord, during the last ice age (115,000 years ago), was formed by a massive glacier carving it out of the granite mountains. In modern times, up to 30% of its surface can be covered by ice.
The surrounding cliffs were shrouded by multiple layers of clouds. Cascades of water, both short and wide as well as long and narrow, fell on all sides of us as we moved further up the fjord.
As we progressed, we started seeing chunks of floating ice, some being very massive with a deep, rich blue color indicating that they had calved from very deep parts of the glaciers. The closer we came to the North Sawyer Glacier at the end of the fjord, the floating ice became more common. Finally, within sight of the glacier but before the ice became too thick to navigate through safely, our ship dropped anchor. We were warned that the anchor dropping would create an incredibly loud sound. It did!
We loaded up into multiple skiffs to head through the broken ice flows towards the glacier. Unlike our later Alaskan trip (2023), we didn’t observe much wildlife as we travelled amidst the ice. Normally, harbour seals and a variety of birds inhabit the floating ice. Our skiffs were able to get very close to the glacier. At one point, we heard an enormous cracking sound. As we watched, part of the glacier edge calved a massive piece of ice into the waters below. Unfortunately, I was not fast enough to capture this experience to share, but my memory holds a vivid copy of the event.
We were able to get relatively ‘close’ to the glacier’s front edge. At that distance, it was clear just how big the glacier’s front edge was. But luckily, not to the point of being in the way of an ice fall. On the way, our guide hauled a piece of the floating ice onto our skiff (our guide was not exactly a large person, so this was quite a feat for her to pull the ice out of the water and into our skiff). It turns out that glacier ice is very dense and therefore very heavy. It was a great experience being able to touch it and get a feel for its weight.
Safely back on our ship, we headed back down Tracy Arm to head towards our next adventure in Windham Bay. As we traveled, we had yet another delicious meal and lecture.
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SHORT VIDEO CLIPS
Tracy Fjord approaching North Sawyer Glacier - w/ sound
PHOTO SHOWCASE
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1709240029NIn the early morning start most of the travellers are staying warm inside the lounge -
1709240030NKayaks are ready to go on the back of our ship, but not for this day -
1709240027NAt the base of Tracy Arm, the land reaches out into the sea on our left side -
1709240032NLooking back along our ship’s wake, the clouds settle as a shroud along the distant mountains -
1709240038NLooking back out to sea, the land also seems to reach out from the right side to narrow our escape path if we turned around -
1709240039NInteresting wake patterns in the waters looking out from the start of Tracy Arm -
1709240043NInteresting wake patterns in the waters looking out from the start of Tracy Arm -
1709240044NStrands of clouds hover close to the water and along the cliff edges -
1709240048NOur first iceberg sighting as we move up into Tracy Arm -
1709240049NStrands of clouds above a lone small iceberg -
1709240052NWaterfalls peaking out from behind cloud shrouds overlooking a single iceberg -
1709240053NCloser in on an iceberg with water streaming from the cliffs -
1709240054NCloud shrouds and water falls -
1709240056NCloud shrouds, water falls and an iceberg -
1709240057NWaterfalls dropping below the clouds -
1709240001PLooking from our ship towards the shore as we continued up Tracy Arm -
1709240003PLooking behind ship in Tracy Arm, just past Williams Cove -
1709240059NCloud layer hovering close to the water in front of the mountains -
1709240005PLooking ahead in Tracy Arm with glacial carved cliffs -
1709240009PWaterfalls dropping into Tracy Arm at the first big bend -
1709240010PLooking ahead just past the first big bend in Tracy Arm -
1709240013PMany narrow and tall waterfalls cascading down a cliff in Tracy Arm -
1709240014PA small iceberg hinting at what is to come once we get past the first bend of Tracy Arm -
1709240015PFellow adventurers on the front of our ship enjoying the clouds draped along the cliff sides -
1709240019PView of multiple waterfalls eventually ending up into a long cascading series into the water -
1709240021PLooking ahead up the Tracy Arm -
1709240022PA cloud bank hanging on the mountain side overlooking a small group of icebergs -
1709240064NSmall iceberg with ragged edges -
1709240068NGranite pinnacle overlooking waterfalls and iceberg -
1709240025PFirst larger iceberg appears -
1709240077NCloser view of what turns out to be two icebergs -
1709240078NFellow passengers watching the scenery from the ship’s desk including a water cascade -
1709240081NMassive cliff side overlooking Tracy Arm -
1709240083NContinuing up Tracy arm with cloud wisps along the sides -
1709240084NAnother iceberg in the distance under the cloud shrouding the cliffs -
1709240085NClose up viewing from the ship of another pair of water cascades plunging into Tracy Arm -
1709240091NThe front of the ship leading up Tracy Arm -
1709240092NA special treat as the sun breaks through and drops a rainbow over the cliff sides -
1709240094NIn the distance the edge of a glacier coming over a high ridge -
1709240095NSmall icebergs are becoming more numerous -
1709240097NA small iceberg in intense green shaded water just before we enter an area with more ice -
1709240102NThe icebergs, medium and small are starting to get more numerous underneath the cliffsides -
1709240060PSmall icebergs become more numerous with a denser area of ice ahead -
1709240062PA water cascading down into Tracy Arm which now has many floating pieces of ice -
1709240070PA island appears surrounded by icebergs just as we start turning up towards North Sawyer Glacier -
1709240071PMore ice, water cascades and clouds hanging over the mountainsides -
1709240164PA skiff full of adventurers near large icebergs heading ahead of us into the clouds hiding the glacier -
1709240126PFinally, the North Sawyer Glacier where it meets the waters of Tracy Arm -
1709240109PAn even closer view North Sawyer Glacier with the clouds shrouding the mountains behind it -
1709240112POne of my travel companies (Adele) and myself in the skiff in front of North Sawyer Glacier -
1709240117POur skiff guide telling one of many interesting stories -
1709240121PA piece of floating ice from the glacier -
1709240122POur skiff guide gesturing towards North Sawyer Glacier as she attempts to teach us -
1709240124POur last close up view of North Sawyer Glacier as our skiff gets ready to return to the ship -
1709240129PAmazing veins and patterns in the rock near the base of North Sawyer Glacier -
1709240143PUp close and personal with a waterfall as we return from the glacier -
1709240146PIn the distance we see another skiff and our ship amongst the cliffs, waterfalls and clouds -
1709240149PLast few looks at the glacier and the waterfall we were just at, heading back to our ship -
1709240152PGetting close to our ship -
1709240154PLast few looks at the glacier and the waterfall we were just at, heading back to our ship -
1709240156POur skiff guide models the mud on her face from the glacial ice as we approach our ship -
1709240162POur ship is parked at the base of the cliffs next to a waterfall
