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Saturday | July 16

The Capitol City of Juneau

“Find your place on the planet, dig in and take responsibility from there.” --Gary Snyder

"If I were to choose the sights, the sounds, the fragrances I most would want to see and hear and smell--among all the delights of the open world--on a final day on earth, I think I would choose these: the clear, ethereal song of a white-throated sparrow singing at dawn; the smell of pine trees in the heat of the noon; the lonely calling of Canada geese; the sight of a dragon-fly glinting in the sunshine; the voice of a hermit thrush far in a darkening woods at evening; and--most spiritual and moving of sights--the white cathedral of a cumulus cloud floating serenely in the blue of the sky.  Edwin Way Teale, "On a Final Day"

Disembarkation day!

It’s off to many different destinations around the country for our guests. It is very tempting to take them up on their offers to stay if ever we visit their hometowns. Juneau is bustling this morning as we dock alongside the pier adjacent to large cruise ships and a float plane dock

A local tells me that the recent U.S. Census had between 5 and 6,000 people moving out of the capital city of Juneau, a drop from around 31,000 to 25k over the last 10 years.

Crew work hard in anticipation of another group that will board in less than 8 hours.

Saturday | July 9

“If I had influence with the good fairy who is supposed to preside over the christening of all children, I should ask that her gift to each child in the world be a SENSE OF WONDER so indestructible that it would last throughout life, as an unfailing antidote against boredom and disenchantments of later years, the sterile preoccupation with things that are artificial, the alienation from the sources of our strength.” --Rachel Carson

All of the M/V Wilderness Discoverer crew forms a line off of the ship on the dock and we shake hands, hug and express our fond farewells to passenger-guests. Folks are very thankful for the natural history interpretive talks I gave over the week. My favorite compliment was one that spread over the ship about a search engine like Google called “Greg-gle”. A guest explained: “Instead of finding an answer by Googling, we think the best way to get an answer is to Greg-gle a query. You were so full of amazing answers on a multitude of subjects.”

One passenger said I would make an amazing minister with my views on Nature. Another said that I was more than a PhD…that I must have several honorary degrees with all of my knowledge on a variety of subjects. An Aussie stated I should run for President and that I would be famous in all of Australia for my ice-swimming and imitation of a seal on an ice-berg.

My fellow colleagues get a boost from the many compliments they received for a job well done. Each one of us, with our outgoing personalities and the pride we take in our jobs, makes small-ship cruising a big hit in the cruise industry. We feel good in knowing that our new company is profitable, as we hear rumors that InnerSea Discoveries may be purchasing some new vessels for upcoming itineraries next year. Kudos to the home office for their expertise in choosing this itinerary and recruiting great guides and crew. We are all giving memories for a lifetime for our guests.

After preparing the ship for the next group of guests, we have about an hour to ourselves onshore for R&R or personal business. It is fun to see how busy this town can get with a huge cruise ship in port!

where is gmack now? innersea discoveries expedition week 10

It has been an exciting week on the InnerSea Discoveries Expedition Click Links Below to read daily updates from Week 10 of the Trip:

July 2 - July 9, 2011

 

Saturday | July 2

TURNOVER DAY = SWABBING THE DECKS

Sunday | July 3

GLACIER CALVING, SEALS & WHALES

Monday | July 4

HAPPY 4^TH OF JULY, EVERYBODY!

Tuesday | July 5

MOOSE PELLETS

Wednesday | July 6

CHIEF SHAKES LODGE

Thursday |July 7

SNORKELING AND BANJO PLAYING

Friday | July 8

CLAM-EATING BEAR

Saturday | July 9

“WE NEED THE GREGgle APP!”

 

 

Where is gMack now? InnerSea Discoveries Expedition Week 9

It has been an exciting week on the InnerSea Discoveries Expedition Click Links Below to read daily updates from Week 9 of the Trip:

June 25 - July 1, 2011

 

Saturday | June 25th

Ketchikan

Sunday | June 26th

El Capitan Passage, Caves and the Oyster Pick-up

Monday | June 27th

Klawock and Sea Otter Sound

Tuesday | June 28th

Little Port Walter

Wednesday | June 29th

Patterson Bay:  Scat and Cataracts!

Thursday |June 30th

Frederick Sound

Friday | July 1st

The Green Flush and an Ice Swim

 

 

Thursday | June 30th

Frederick Sound

Last night we motored into this most stunning of bays on Baranof Island. The majority of guests decide to kayak up the fiord to the splendid waterfall that seems to fall out of the sky down a precipice covered in conifers. Just beyond at the head of the bay on about two hundred acres of mudflats and meadows, a grizzly bear feeds on grasses. Kayakers line themselves along the edge of the river opposite the bear. A bald eagle is perched on a stump, providing another photographic opportunity.

What is the difference between a BROWN bear and a GRIZZLY bear, you may ask? They are the same species, Ursus arctos. The coastal grizzly is called a brown bear. It is significantly larger than the interior grizzly bear because of diet and climate.

Salmon are in abundance along the coast of Alaska. Because the waters of the Gulf of Alaska warm the air enough to moderate the temperatures along the coast, brownies can stay active a couple of months longer than the interior grizzlies. The latter have to deal with temperatures that drop well below freezing, triggering the hibernation response.

We spot a brown bear on the flats and kayak upriver a few hundred meters to get a better look. An eagle perched on a beached stump above the mud-flats was a favorite photo-subject for kayakers.

Later in the day, I get on the marine radio and make a call to the Alaska Whale Foundation. I talk with world-renowned humpback whale researcher Dr. Fred Sharpe. He says that he is available to join us for a talk aboard the ship! We meet him in Frederick Sound and he motors over in his small Zodiac. Fred and I have been friends for over 20 years. He answers lots of questions and entertains guests in the lounge with his humor and knowledge.

After just a half-hour, the swells on this inland sea magically disappear and become glass-like. Humpback whales are spotted “around the clock” in all directions from the ships decks. We estimate at least two dozen whales blowing from just a hundred meters to a couple of kilometers away.

Before disembarking, Fred mentions the influx of nutrients and plankton as a result of the persistent winds we had throughout the morning. Frederick Sound is in the middle of a nutrient-rich geographical area. The plankton feed the schooling fish which in turn feed the leviathans.

Saturday | June 25th

We lift anchor at 0600 and motor a few nautical miles to Ketchikan for disembarkation at 0830. We bid a fond farewell to our old friends and shipmates. It has been a week-long voyage but when we recollect all of the memories, it seems as if we were together for a much longer period of time. We have experienced so much with all of our senses.

After a long and hard push to clean the ship from top to bottom, we wait for our new passenger friends and shipmates to board the M/V Wilderness Discoverer at 1630 hours.

All of us take turns to show guests to their cabins. We meet folks in the lounge for appetizers and “welcome aboard” drinks.

The captain, expedition leader, chief engineer and hotel manager each give a brief introduction to ship-living. We are on our way north up and around Prince of Wales Island.

This evening several of our guest passengers assemble in the lounge and play music. Friends are made rapidly and much merriment ensues.There are suggestions that our company buy some instruments for the vessels night entertainment, such as a Latin percussion box drum and a mid-level guitar, such as a Yamaha or “Ibanez”. Why not add tambourines, shakers with rice, recorders, etc?

Too much fun at night might lead to some weary adventure-seekers during the daytime, so let’s get some rest!

 

Wednesday | June 15

Patterson Bay &  Baranof Island

Everybody onboard is excited and express how their vacation has far exceeded their expectations.

Today is a fabulous day for a kayak, and I have the privilege of leading a small group.  There is so much to see and so much to explore in this pristine wilderness area on South Baranof Island.

 

Following are a few notes jotted-down in my “rite-in-the-rain” waterproof journal:  “During the last mile or so of my kayak I was pondering how it is possible that each and every day seems to top the last day in terms of excitement.  I have often heard folks say that they don’t understand how we can possibly have a better day than the day we just had, and yet, invariably, it happens…day, after day, after day.”

“Undoubtedly, each day brings newness and surprises.  Due to the small size of the ship and our collective enthusiasm for being where we are, we have ample opportunities to get to know our fellow travelers.  Stories are swapped in the lounge, at the dinner table, in the hot tubs or out on the viewing decks.  Everybody seems to be relaxed, in a mood for a great time and certainly not caught up with appearances.  Preconceived ideas are dropped from our minds and we allow ourselves to get lost in each and every moment”

“After a certain amount of time hanging-out and getting to know each other, it seems as if we all become exposed to some kind of magic potion that gives us the capacity to be more receptive to the beauty and the power of the place that surrounds us.”

“Certainly we forget unimportant things like what day of the week it is, have little interest in current events in the world and have little time to think about what the boss back home might be thinking.  We let go of all worrisome, nagging doubts and become connected to something greater.  Is it possible that we are absolutely “in the present”?  Have we all arrived at the state-of-being where all that matters is the here and now? I am certain that a significant transformation takes place.”

Tuesday | June 14

Big Port Walter & Baranof Island

Today I have the pleasure of leading a half-day hike in the dazzling rainforest at Lover's Cove in Big Port Walter.

Check out the video below:

Most of the hike is bush-whacking through 5 to 10-foot tall salmon-berry shrubs.  Huge sitka spruce and western hemlock trees towered above us.  Rows of large trees grow on fallen nurse logs as we follow a meandering salmon stream.  

We find fresh bear scat full of teeth and hooves of a sitka black-tailed deer.

People are in a Zen-like state of awe.  While snacking, I address our group of intrepid travelers and say:  “This is it folks…the way the rest of the world used to be.  Prime salmon spawning habitat beneath surrounds us on all sides.  Streams in California used to be chock-full of salmon with grizzly bears feeding on them.  Now the streams are mostly empty and degraded.  The last brown bear in California was shot in 1924.  Extirpated…extinct.”

We have time for a group photo in front of a fallen giant and head back to the shore where a waiting small boat takes us back to the comforts of the “mother ship”.

Tonight we cruise a couple of dozen nautical miles to the north in Chatham Strait to another beautiful fiord.  Guests and crew come out on the decks for the ever-changing scenery and a chance to see wildlife.

The lighting, coupled with the fresh smells and the sounds of waterfalls cascading down the cliffs is very stimulating.  The gentle hum of the engine cruising at 4 to 5-knots is rather soothing.  Coming into a bay or fiord for the first time is sublime.  So new, so fresh…the water looks like oil, especially the reflections of sky and clouds.  The smallest waves create oblong circles reflecting blue sky and streams by like a moving Monet painting.

The songs of the crepuscular animals—the thrushes--serenade us as we move deeper into Patterson Bay to our anchorage.

Where is gMack now? InnerSea Discoveries Expedition Week 5

It has been an exciting week on the InnerSea Discoveries Expedition Click Links Below to read daily updates from Week 5 of the Trip:

May 28th-June 4, 2011

 

Saturday | May 28th

Ketchikan Turnover Day

Sunday | May 29th

Alaska Gold Oysters

Monday | May 30th

The Totem Graveyard

Tuesday | May 31st

Entering Patterson Bay

Wednesday |June 1st

The Snow is Melting into Music

 

Thursday | June 2nd

Patterson Bay Fiord

 

Saturday | June 4th

Packing Up

 

 

 

Thursday | June 2nd

The remarkable sunrise is appreciated by all as we depart the narrow and spectacular Patterson Bay fiord.

In the afternoon, we enjoy seeing the penguin-like Common Murre seabird floating on drifting logs.

We are also entertained this afternoon by a breaching humpback whale. I finally take a photo of a whale with the background for a change. So many times we take photos of our subject and only get water as the background. The viewer might wonder if the whale is really in Alaska  or wintering in its breeding and calving grounds down in Hawaii.

The hours spent looking for wildlife is a perfect opportunity for me to put some educational hand-outs out on the top deck and give a presentation on migration, the natural history of marine mammals and the threats that they face from human activity.

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