A trip out to Sea...

First week of work proved to be successful!  Learning the job, how to get around this big state (what milepost to turn on, etc), getting more comfortable with giving interp in this new area (by the way, glaciers and gold sum Alaska up in 2 words)...it's all coming together!  I had my best wildlife morning as I was deadheading(driving empty) to Denali.  I had camped out along the way, and the next morning it started with a male spruce grouse hanging out in my campsite, and then on the way to the park I had a nice black bear cross the road in front of me, a porcupine waddling down the side of the highway (my first live porcupine up here), and then as I was the first one to the train depot waiting to pick up a group, a cow moose and her 2 calves walked across the parking lot, went underneath the awning for the loading area, and crossed the train tracks!  And I think I was the only one around to see all that!

 

 

 

Had a fantastic Alaskan day yesterday!  A friend from work and I were able to hop on a Kenai Fjord Boat Tour, which leaves out of Seward and the Ressurrection Bay.  It was a 9 hour tour (yikes) but we sure saw a lot!!  We went all the way out to the Northwestern Fjord to see the NW Glacier, which was pretty awesome in itself, but even better because we were the only touring ship out there! Most of the waters were sheltered and calm, but there was a small stretch of open water where I needed to sit and stare at some inanimate object on the floor in order to overcome a little seasickness which was a first for me. 

 

We had some great sightings!  Everything from eagles, murres, horned puffins, tufted puffins, rhinoceros auklets, to the sea otter, harbor seals, sea lions, humpback whales, orca whales, dall porpoises, mountain goats and kids, black bear, waterfalls, glaciers, it was amazing!!

 

 

 

 



Ice fall from calving glacier



 

 

 

For more wildlife pictures from this trip and and elsewhere...please visit the 'Alaska Wildlife' album at
https://picasaweb.google.com/chilipepperphotography