Reid Cove, Alaska
It has again been many days since I have had a chance to write. I had to give up my cabin for Scott’s brother Tom and his girlfriend Kristin. I am now staying in the salon, and have had no time or space to myself since Sunday. The cruising has been absolutely wonderful, and the scenery has been magnificent. We went up Tracey Arm, and tried to make our way to the main glacier, but could not get through the floating ice. We even launched the dingy, and tried to get through, but it was a little too dangerous, as some of the floating chunks out weighed us by tons, and were surrounded with razor sharp edges that were capable of slitting the tubes on the dink.
We went back to the big boat, and towed the dingy back up to the secondary arm which had been choked with ice earlier. The channel had opened by this time, and we were able to get all the way up with the big boat. The Sawyer Glacier was magnificent and impressive, towering about 300 feet above the water, and dropping small calves pretty routinely. We were very close to it and everyone got some very good photos. I again jumped in the dink with Pat, and we took a few more photos of Pipe Dream. There were a couple of seals in the area, but they would not let us get close enough for pictures.
We began our exit after having hot buttered rum, and enjoying the view a little while longer. When we entered the main arm, there was lots of floating ice, and Scott and I took turns navigating the boat through it. We did lightly bump a couple of smaller pieces, but all in all escaped with no damage. We anchored in Tracey Arm Cove going both in and out of Tracey Arm. Tracey Arm Cove is another beautiful spot, which is why we chose to stay there twice. On the second morning, since the dink was still in the water, Pat and I ventured to shore. We were sharing the cove with another small boat owned by a couple from Juneau. The woman was on shore, playing rock toss with their dog. After a brief chat, we hiked up and over the small ridge to see what was on the other side. What we found was another cove with large pieces of floating ice with the sun reflecting off of them, and beautiful snow capped mountains also illuminated with great sunlight. That is something that we haven’t seen much of. We both posed with a chunk of ice that had been left when the tide dropped.
After getting back in the dingy, and beginning our return to Pipe Dream, I noticed a good sized iceberg not far away. The dingy really needed a good, high speed run,(and so did I) so I opened her up and let her run all the way out to the iceberg. It turned out to be a great move, as we were up close and personal with a great piece of nature. The shapes and color were something to behold. I unfortunately had a full memory chip, so again will have to wait for Pat’s photos. We retuned to the big boat, and shipped the dingy so that we could make good time to Reid Cove.
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Captain Scott's Log ~ Wednesday September 24th, 2008 Part 2
Subject: Best Day 2
The ice at the base of the glacier went beyond blue--it was almost purple. On the way out I had planned to stop and hike a side valley. We did stop and the valley was beautiful but it was 300 ft deep just a few feet from the shore. Sunset is changing fast and we needed to get to an anchorage before dark--going at night in this ice is not smart. And we did anchor as the last light was fading. With the improving weather we got a sunset---very rare--and no rain at night, But Cold But Cold. This morning was bright and clear. Great views of the higher mountains all covered with new snow. The paddle wheel witch gives us our speed had broken blades back in Japan. We had suffered with this for months and Tom brought us a new one. So yesterday we had good speed readouts for the first time. The ice however took out the new paddle wheel before it was one day old. Now sailing under main only--downwind towing the dingy--with an SOG of 10.2 kts—reasonable protected water in the Stephens passage--likely to sail on to Petersburg, a Norwegian community.
The ice at the base of the glacier went beyond blue--it was almost purple. On the way out I had planned to stop and hike a side valley. We did stop and the valley was beautiful but it was 300 ft deep just a few feet from the shore. Sunset is changing fast and we needed to get to an anchorage before dark--going at night in this ice is not smart. And we did anchor as the last light was fading. With the improving weather we got a sunset---very rare--and no rain at night, But Cold But Cold. This morning was bright and clear. Great views of the higher mountains all covered with new snow. The paddle wheel witch gives us our speed had broken blades back in Japan. We had suffered with this for months and Tom brought us a new one. So yesterday we had good speed readouts for the first time. The ice however took out the new paddle wheel before it was one day old. Now sailing under main only--downwind towing the dingy--with an SOG of 10.2 kts—reasonable protected water in the Stephens passage--likely to sail on to Petersburg, a Norwegian community.
Captain Scott's Log ~ Wednesday, September 24th, 2008
Subject: Best Day Ever
From the size of the icebergs, many larger than the boat, we should have
guessed what the Sawyyer would be like 25 miles up the fjord. We had
clearing weather from last night’s rain and could see new snow on the
surrounding mountains. A few miles into the fjord the side walls rose
vertically 2000 feet. The mountain peaks just beyond were 5000feet. Water
runoff from the mountains spewed over the fjord rim creating hundreds of
2000 ft waterfalls. Each little side canyon was the remains of the old
glacier with its U shaped valley and polished rock walls. For 25 miles we
marveled at the scenery and dodged icebergs. One small sightseeing boat
passed us and went to the face of the So Sawyer Glacier. 1 1/2 mile from
there was as far as we could go as the ice was so thick. The sightseeing
boat was a dot against the 400 ft high ice edge. As Pipe Dream could go no
further, the dingy was put in and a party of 5 tried to push through. The
fjord is 1200 ft deep but the dingy would beach it self on ice flows and made
little progress. An inflatable in a frozen ice field with the glacier calving
monster bergs was pretty stupid--a fact which finally dawned on us and we
gave up. So we tried the North Sawyer and made it through to the face of the
glacier. Its 400 ft face was leaning out in several places and there were
frequent loud cracks. Seals swam nearby and the boat was photographed from the
dingy. Stand by for part 2
From the size of the icebergs, many larger than the boat, we should have
guessed what the Sawyyer would be like 25 miles up the fjord. We had
clearing weather from last night’s rain and could see new snow on the
surrounding mountains. A few miles into the fjord the side walls rose
vertically 2000 feet. The mountain peaks just beyond were 5000feet. Water
runoff from the mountains spewed over the fjord rim creating hundreds of
2000 ft waterfalls. Each little side canyon was the remains of the old
glacier with its U shaped valley and polished rock walls. For 25 miles we
marveled at the scenery and dodged icebergs. One small sightseeing boat
passed us and went to the face of the So Sawyer Glacier. 1 1/2 mile from
there was as far as we could go as the ice was so thick. The sightseeing
boat was a dot against the 400 ft high ice edge. As Pipe Dream could go no
further, the dingy was put in and a party of 5 tried to push through. The
fjord is 1200 ft deep but the dingy would beach it self on ice flows and made
little progress. An inflatable in a frozen ice field with the glacier calving
monster bergs was pretty stupid--a fact which finally dawned on us and we
gave up. So we tried the North Sawyer and made it through to the face of the
glacier. Its 400 ft face was leaning out in several places and there were
frequent loud cracks. Seals swam nearby and the boat was photographed from the
dingy. Stand by for part 2
Captain Scott's Log ~ Tuesday, September 23rd, 2008
Subject: Icebergs
After the Humpback display we returned to Jeneau. Tom and Kristin arrived
and went with Gill and Pat on a heliocopter tour of the nearby glacier.
Jeneau was shutting down for the winter--as in boarding up. Still we had 2
good days with some sunshine--very rare for Juneau. Today we left. Going
south. Our first night is in the Tracy Arm and on arrival we were greeted
by icebergs. Really, ice flows bigger than the boat and we are down stream
25 miles from the glaciers which calved them. Also new snow is on the hill
above us---our first of the season. Now snug in a cove in very good weather
(light rain) with the heaters on. Tomorrow up stream as far as the ice will
let us.
After the Humpback display we returned to Jeneau. Tom and Kristin arrived
and went with Gill and Pat on a heliocopter tour of the nearby glacier.
Jeneau was shutting down for the winter--as in boarding up. Still we had 2
good days with some sunshine--very rare for Juneau. Today we left. Going
south. Our first night is in the Tracy Arm and on arrival we were greeted
by icebergs. Really, ice flows bigger than the boat and we are down stream
25 miles from the glaciers which calved them. Also new snow is on the hill
above us---our first of the season. Now snug in a cove in very good weather
(light rain) with the heaters on. Tomorrow up stream as far as the ice will
let us.
Captain Scott's Log ~ Monday, September 22nd, 2008
Subject: Glaciers Bears & Whales
On Wed the weather cleared and we had a 2 day sunny window to see the park. First was the Margerie Glacier "that offers the quintessential tidewater glacier experience". Its 200 foot face was higher than the cruise ship that was there. It was very noisy with frequent cracks, groans and booms--often sounding like thunder. That night we anchored close to the Reid Glacier and the next morning dingied in to hike around it. Gill fell in a glacial stream but pressed on and has a good photo of her in a deep blue ice cavern.
Thursday afternoon we saw the Lamplugh and the John Hopkins Glaciers.
This was our best day in the park as the entire John Hopkins inlet is breathtaking with numerous glaciers. We have some good photos of the boat alongside ice bergs.The Lamplugh was the best with alternating layers of blue ice, white ice, and black ice (no yellow ice) and we ventured closer than was safe to photo the boat. Thursday night the 2 days of good weather ended--rain, mist and fog returned. Fri we made the forced march out of the park and back up Icy Strait. 30 kts of wind on the nose with big seas was no fun. But by dark we got into Coot Bay and docked 100 ft from shore on a float. After sunset 2 Grizzlies walked the beach right by us. Today the weather is better and we are headed to Juneau to pick up Tom and Kristian who have just missed their plane and now will arrive on Sunday. This morning we saw Humpbacks jumping and followed them closely for over an hour.
On Wed the weather cleared and we had a 2 day sunny window to see the park. First was the Margerie Glacier "that offers the quintessential tidewater glacier experience". Its 200 foot face was higher than the cruise ship that was there. It was very noisy with frequent cracks, groans and booms--often sounding like thunder. That night we anchored close to the Reid Glacier and the next morning dingied in to hike around it. Gill fell in a glacial stream but pressed on and has a good photo of her in a deep blue ice cavern.
Thursday afternoon we saw the Lamplugh and the John Hopkins Glaciers.
This was our best day in the park as the entire John Hopkins inlet is breathtaking with numerous glaciers. We have some good photos of the boat alongside ice bergs.The Lamplugh was the best with alternating layers of blue ice, white ice, and black ice (no yellow ice) and we ventured closer than was safe to photo the boat. Thursday night the 2 days of good weather ended--rain, mist and fog returned. Fri we made the forced march out of the park and back up Icy Strait. 30 kts of wind on the nose with big seas was no fun. But by dark we got into Coot Bay and docked 100 ft from shore on a float. After sunset 2 Grizzlies walked the beach right by us. Today the weather is better and we are headed to Juneau to pick up Tom and Kristian who have just missed their plane and now will arrive on Sunday. This morning we saw Humpbacks jumping and followed them closely for over an hour.
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Jeff's Log ~ Friday, September 19th, 2008
Friday, September 19, 2008 Icy Straights, Alaska
We have completed another trip around Glacier Bay National park. We spent more time touring this time and saw lots of beautiful sights. The night before last, we were anchored about a mile from Reed Glacier, and on Thursday morning, I splashed the dingy for the first time since Japan, and we all went to shore to do a little hiking. I made it my mission to walk on top of the glacier. It was quite a hike to get there from the beach we landed on. There was some light climbing and crossing of several streams necessary. Scott and I saw one bear track in the area of a lot of empty mussel shells. Judging from the amount of eaten mussels, I knew we did not have to worry about a hungry bear in the neighborhood!
Gill and Pat took off quickly, wanting to be the first on the glacier. I caught up with them quickly by making my way over the higher ground. They did not think that was the right approach, so I helped them over a couple of streams, and then they went their way, and I went mine. It turned out that I was right. I made it to the top of the dirty part of the glacier, and then it was getting way too slippery. Going up wasn’t the problem, it would have been controlling the speed of descent that was. I had no cleats on my sea boots, and the sun was beginning to shine on the ice making the surface liquefy.
Pat and Gill stayed on the bottom, and made their way into one of the fissures. They were actually in the glacier! Gill slipped while crossing a steam, and got herself soaked, so upon the return to Pipe Dream, the first order of business was starting the generator and turning on the heat, so everyone, and especially Gill could get warmed up. The next thing was getting the mud under control. The dirt and mud from the glacier is called “glacier flour” and believe me, it is just like flour. It gets on everything, and sticks with the slightest amount of moisture. Our boots were covered in it, the back of my jeans were covered in it from when I had to reduce vertical mass on the ice slope, The dingy deck was covered in it, and it was almost spreading to the big boat. Everyone took off their boots in the dink, and got on Pipe Dream in their socks. The soles of the hiking boots were absolutely the worst. My sea boots rinsed right off, and I proceeded to clean hiking boots of the other crew, confining the mess to the area behind the steering wheel. Then it was time to raise the anchor and get under way for the John Hopkins Glacier, which is the one setting off the most calving.
On the way there, we passed the prettiest glacier that we have seen yet. It comes right to the water’s edge, and in the middle has a hole through which a river of water runs. That was spectacular! All around the hole could be seen the layers which make up the glacier. It was like a cross section of time right in front of us.
We continued up the fjord and began encountering lots of floating ice. Rather than risk the waterline paint, we opted to turn around about five miles from the glacier. It was still quite impressive, as it goes from the sea level to about 2,000 feet in altitude. On the way out. I jumped in the dingy which we were towing, and had a Pipe Dream photo shoot using a small iceberg and the glacier with the hole as props. The pictures turned out very well, and Scott was pretty happy with them. It is a little hard to get good steady pictures while on a bouncy little dingy, but I did the best I could. I also had Pat’s camera, and she has some of the better shots on hers because my batteries went dead after a few shots. After pictures, Pat made some wonderful hot buttered rum. It really hit the spot after the chilly picture shoot. I also just had to give the dink a good high speed run, so my face and cheeks were a rosy red.
We proceeded to our anchorage that Scott chose, and it was like target shooting with the anchor. There was an underwater mountain that we had to hit the top of with the anchor. Everything around was hundreds of feet deep, and our target was sixty feet. The GPS put us right on the spot, and our timing could not have been better. The anchor went down very quickly and set on the first attempt. Sometimes we really look professional. The next day, Scott and I were up early to get a good start on a long day of motoring back to Coot Cove. When we arrived there, we decided to anchor on the other side of the ridge from where we had been previously. When we pulled in close to shore, we noticed a floating dock that is not attached to land. We decided to tie up there, rather than anchor. It turned out to be a very good decision, because for the first time since being in Alaska, we saw two grizzly bears come out of the woods and wander up the shore.
When Scott spotted them, he said to be quiet and come up on deck. Well, the large roasting pans that are usually stored in the oven had been placed right in front of my cabin door. I did not see them, and the resounding crash from kicking the pans accidentally could probably be heard twenty miles away. The bears were not phased, however, and continued their slow stroll as if we weren’t there.
On Saturday morning, it was a return trip to Juneau. Gill is leaving early Monday morning, and Scott’s brother Tom arrives on Sunday night. He and his girlfriend Kristin will be staying at a hotel Sunday, and will move into my cabin on Monday. Tom had our new anchor windlass shipped to the hotel, so I went and picked it up on Sunday morning. Sunday afternoon was spent removing the old and installing the new. That job went relatively smoothly. The hardest part was getting the corrosion broken between the inner and outer pieces on the old windlass. I got a good workout in the process. Sometimes, I wish that I had a helper. The new one is chrome plated, and sure does look a lot nicer than the old brown colored one. Sunday would have been my Dad’s birthday, so I also took a moment to think about him.
Moving out of my cabin was not too bad either, although I found that I have accumulated a lot of stuff in a year. I packed the shorts and light clothing away in storage bags and put them out back in the lazarette. Souvenirs and things I did the same with, and my working clothes I put in my bag and moved to the knee hole under the vanity in Scott’s cabin. I’ll be all right for the eight days that Tom is here.
We have completed another trip around Glacier Bay National park. We spent more time touring this time and saw lots of beautiful sights. The night before last, we were anchored about a mile from Reed Glacier, and on Thursday morning, I splashed the dingy for the first time since Japan, and we all went to shore to do a little hiking. I made it my mission to walk on top of the glacier. It was quite a hike to get there from the beach we landed on. There was some light climbing and crossing of several streams necessary. Scott and I saw one bear track in the area of a lot of empty mussel shells. Judging from the amount of eaten mussels, I knew we did not have to worry about a hungry bear in the neighborhood!
Gill and Pat took off quickly, wanting to be the first on the glacier. I caught up with them quickly by making my way over the higher ground. They did not think that was the right approach, so I helped them over a couple of streams, and then they went their way, and I went mine. It turned out that I was right. I made it to the top of the dirty part of the glacier, and then it was getting way too slippery. Going up wasn’t the problem, it would have been controlling the speed of descent that was. I had no cleats on my sea boots, and the sun was beginning to shine on the ice making the surface liquefy.
Pat and Gill stayed on the bottom, and made their way into one of the fissures. They were actually in the glacier! Gill slipped while crossing a steam, and got herself soaked, so upon the return to Pipe Dream, the first order of business was starting the generator and turning on the heat, so everyone, and especially Gill could get warmed up. The next thing was getting the mud under control. The dirt and mud from the glacier is called “glacier flour” and believe me, it is just like flour. It gets on everything, and sticks with the slightest amount of moisture. Our boots were covered in it, the back of my jeans were covered in it from when I had to reduce vertical mass on the ice slope, The dingy deck was covered in it, and it was almost spreading to the big boat. Everyone took off their boots in the dink, and got on Pipe Dream in their socks. The soles of the hiking boots were absolutely the worst. My sea boots rinsed right off, and I proceeded to clean hiking boots of the other crew, confining the mess to the area behind the steering wheel. Then it was time to raise the anchor and get under way for the John Hopkins Glacier, which is the one setting off the most calving.
On the way there, we passed the prettiest glacier that we have seen yet. It comes right to the water’s edge, and in the middle has a hole through which a river of water runs. That was spectacular! All around the hole could be seen the layers which make up the glacier. It was like a cross section of time right in front of us.
We continued up the fjord and began encountering lots of floating ice. Rather than risk the waterline paint, we opted to turn around about five miles from the glacier. It was still quite impressive, as it goes from the sea level to about 2,000 feet in altitude. On the way out. I jumped in the dingy which we were towing, and had a Pipe Dream photo shoot using a small iceberg and the glacier with the hole as props. The pictures turned out very well, and Scott was pretty happy with them. It is a little hard to get good steady pictures while on a bouncy little dingy, but I did the best I could. I also had Pat’s camera, and she has some of the better shots on hers because my batteries went dead after a few shots. After pictures, Pat made some wonderful hot buttered rum. It really hit the spot after the chilly picture shoot. I also just had to give the dink a good high speed run, so my face and cheeks were a rosy red.
We proceeded to our anchorage that Scott chose, and it was like target shooting with the anchor. There was an underwater mountain that we had to hit the top of with the anchor. Everything around was hundreds of feet deep, and our target was sixty feet. The GPS put us right on the spot, and our timing could not have been better. The anchor went down very quickly and set on the first attempt. Sometimes we really look professional. The next day, Scott and I were up early to get a good start on a long day of motoring back to Coot Cove. When we arrived there, we decided to anchor on the other side of the ridge from where we had been previously. When we pulled in close to shore, we noticed a floating dock that is not attached to land. We decided to tie up there, rather than anchor. It turned out to be a very good decision, because for the first time since being in Alaska, we saw two grizzly bears come out of the woods and wander up the shore.
When Scott spotted them, he said to be quiet and come up on deck. Well, the large roasting pans that are usually stored in the oven had been placed right in front of my cabin door. I did not see them, and the resounding crash from kicking the pans accidentally could probably be heard twenty miles away. The bears were not phased, however, and continued their slow stroll as if we weren’t there.
On Saturday morning, it was a return trip to Juneau. Gill is leaving early Monday morning, and Scott’s brother Tom arrives on Sunday night. He and his girlfriend Kristin will be staying at a hotel Sunday, and will move into my cabin on Monday. Tom had our new anchor windlass shipped to the hotel, so I went and picked it up on Sunday morning. Sunday afternoon was spent removing the old and installing the new. That job went relatively smoothly. The hardest part was getting the corrosion broken between the inner and outer pieces on the old windlass. I got a good workout in the process. Sometimes, I wish that I had a helper. The new one is chrome plated, and sure does look a lot nicer than the old brown colored one. Sunday would have been my Dad’s birthday, so I also took a moment to think about him.
Moving out of my cabin was not too bad either, although I found that I have accumulated a lot of stuff in a year. I packed the shorts and light clothing away in storage bags and put them out back in the lazarette. Souvenirs and things I did the same with, and my working clothes I put in my bag and moved to the knee hole under the vanity in Scott’s cabin. I’ll be all right for the eight days that Tom is here.
Captain Scott's Log ~ Tuesday, September 16th 2008
Subject: Back in Glacier Bay
Monday was a foggy experience so we cut the day short and went into Coot
Bay. 58 15.4n 134 53.3w Its not in our cruising guide but Ken said its our
best anchorage ever. It rained all night but that’s standard and today we set
out early for Glacier Bay. We got some wind and sailed by "Rocky Island"
which had the sea lion colony and had an uneventful sail/motor sail to the
Park. Now stopped in Fingers Bay 58 35n 136 13w one boat length from a
waterfall. Ken says it’s our best anchorage ever. Ken is having a good time.
When last here 5 days ago there was no fall color. Now all the trees are
bright yellow and some look past their prime. It’s raining. Foggy mist flows
through the hillside trees. Our nearby waterfall dominates the water sounds
but 4 other streams are in sight flowing into Fingers Bay. Maybe Ken is
right.
Monday was a foggy experience so we cut the day short and went into Coot
Bay. 58 15.4n 134 53.3w Its not in our cruising guide but Ken said its our
best anchorage ever. It rained all night but that’s standard and today we set
out early for Glacier Bay. We got some wind and sailed by "Rocky Island"
which had the sea lion colony and had an uneventful sail/motor sail to the
Park. Now stopped in Fingers Bay 58 35n 136 13w one boat length from a
waterfall. Ken says it’s our best anchorage ever. Ken is having a good time.
When last here 5 days ago there was no fall color. Now all the trees are
bright yellow and some look past their prime. It’s raining. Foggy mist flows
through the hillside trees. Our nearby waterfall dominates the water sounds
but 4 other streams are in sight flowing into Fingers Bay. Maybe Ken is
right.
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