Alaska's Inside Passage —
Day 7: Tracy Arm - Ford's Terror Wilderness Area
Sunrise: 0415 Sunset: 2144 Low tide: 0756 -3.5 ft. High tide: 1427 14.7 ft. Low tide: 2001 2.7 ft.
Saturday, July 14, 2007
This day we spent in the stunning fjords of the Tracy Arm: Ford's Terror Wilderness. Part of the Tongass National Forest, Tracy Arm and Endicott Arm are the major features of the region.
These long, deep and narrow fjords penetrate more than 30 miles into the heavily glaciated coastal mountain range. At the head of both of these arms are active tidewater glaciers, which continually calve massive slabs of ice into the fjord. During the summer, when glacial activity is at a maximum, these fjords have considerable floating ice ranging in size from a small city building to cocktail ice. Tlingit Indian villages once existed in the area near the terminus of Sumdum Glacier in Holkham Bay and at Stanford Cove in Endicott Arm.
Highlight of the day: Being close, really close Dawes glacier is enormous, about 200 feet high and very active. Although it looks like we are waiting right in front of the glacier for another calving, our zodiac waits in about 1 mile distance. When the ice breaks and falls into the water, the grumble and roar will reach us seconds after we saw the ice disappear into the water. |
Early this morning, the Sea Lion will cross the terminal moraine, left by the receding glaciers and make our way up Endicott Arm. Bring your cameras and binoculars and join us on deck as we scan for wildlife, photograph the countless waterfalls and discuss the geologic forces that shaped this icy landscape.
After traveling the entire length of Endicott Arm, we arrive at Dawes Glacier. We'll launch our Zodiacs and kayaks after lunch, for some up-close views of the icebergs that have calved off of the Dawes glacier, at the head of Endicott Arm.
Did you know? There are more active glaciers and ice fields in Alaska than in all the remaining states combined, with a total of 100,000. The largest is the Malaspina Glacier, which covers 850 square miles.