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| Capturing Glacier Bay aboard the “MS Eurodam” cruise ship |
By LEN BOSE
(Tuesday) September 5, Glacier Bay
The only comparison to a Duffy cruise is looking for the scoop in the BCYC ice machine. Glacier Bay is simply explained with one word – “WOW”! The Park Rangers had boarded the boat earlier that morning as we entered the bay. Our weather window was the best of the season, explained by the captain over the load speaker while releasing all of his crew to take turns coming on deck for a view. The Eurodam had been repeating this route every week since April, with this being the first time the crew had been at ease. The sea lion pups had dispersed the icebergs in front of the glacier, which allowed the ship to come within 2,000 feet of the glacier. The diamond blue colors of the glacier were memorizing; the history of the area haunts me, while at the same time, it’s so embracing. Our cabana is paying high dividends while taking in both views from the port and starboard side while breakfast is being served. The glacial calving has some resemblance to our kids jumping from the Lido Bridge, just not the same size wake. When chunks of ice break off the glacier there is a pulsating crack, with the sea birds moving towards the pulse as the ice falls into the bay. Kind of like emptying your ice from the cooler into the harbor after a Duffy cruise. The panoramic view is never-ending with each cove grabbing your attention and ahh…We spent more than two hours in front of the glacier with the calving accruing every 10 minutes. Traveling in and out of Glacier Bay lasted most of the day, while the next cruise ship took its turn in front of the glacier.
(Wednesday) September 6 – Sitka, Alaska
We arrived at port at 8 a.m. with a water excursion of sea otters and whale watching. I’ve seen my share of most mammal sea creatures, so this excursion was for my wife Jennifer, and I had better show interest. While waiting to board our excursion boat, I wandered over to the information stand just located off our gangway. A lady with a big smile was working the berth when I approached and asked if she could answer a couple of silly questions for me. “There are no silly questions,” she replied. I didn’t catch her name, but asked: “Do you feel that there should be fewer cruise ships, and how do the locals feel about the cruise fleet being in town? Do the locals have concerns about the cruise ships affecting the environment?” “Okay, those are interesting questions that I have never been asked before.” She went on to say, “Most of the locals understand the trade-offs for employment and the environment. The people that live in Sitka are fishermen and the cruise ships don’t really bother us. We have all seen the whales and other marine life come into port wrapped around the bulbs of the cruise ships, which always seem to make the headlines. There has been a large increase in the number of cruise ships passing through our port, especially since we have added a pier rather than ships anchoring them and shuttling passages ashore, and it has become overwhelming. There should be something done about the larger ships. I’m just not sure how these changes could be enforced,” she said.
We then headed down the gangway to our excursion vessel and quickly headed out of the channel and around the local islands. The first stop was a bell buoy to check out the sea lions. I thought to myself, “Just slap me across my head now…this is going to be so exciting (sarcastically).” That’s when Ellena, our guide, was above and beyond qualified with her presentation of the sea life and wildlife in Alaska. She caught my attention when she introduced the sea lions on the bell buoy as Steller sea lions and went on to explain that they do not belch or bark. My mind raced on how to bring these sea lions home and blend in with ours. We were fortunate to have another clear day and smooth seas. With many whales, bald eagles, and sea otter sightings, we worked our way back into port. I was able to pull Ellena aside and ask her, “What is your opinion about the number of cruise ships in the area, and should the number of ships be reduced?” “It’s highly dependent as to which area they are in, especially in southeast Alaska and Sitka in particular. We don’t get many independent travelers in order to supplement the community itself, a lot of that is going to be tourist-based. I am a big believer that people won’t care about what they don’t witness first-hand, so if we don’t let people view the humpback whales and other marine life and how emissions and plastics affect them, people will not care. There is a big part of what I feel people need to witness. At one time, there were many ferries that would take people out to view the marine life with far fewer whale sightings. So should we have one area that the cruise ship would go into and take the ferries out of, which might have less impact on marine life? At the same time, with all the ships going into one port, you will have a lot more noise which confuses the whales. The underwater noise is a big problem, so when you have these huge ships and more need to stop, there should be an inclination to move toward smaller vessels that can maneuver more easily. I will say that fewer cruise ships are better for the wildlife itself,” she shared. Then she went on to say, “Water quality is also a major concern, with diesel leaks, discharge from the water makers. Higher regulation is needed, but not everyone is being accountable, even though the Coast Guard is doing all that it can. Underwater noise pollution is having the latest negative impact on marine life.”
So should any of you take this cruise, be sure to take the time to go into the town of Sitka. Jen and I felt we were too short on time and didn’t go, but it turned out that was the wrong call.
(Thursday) September 7 – Ketchikan, Alaska Ketchikan was one of our last stops after coming ashore, we walked back into the outskirts of town and found a local diner. Picture walking into a western bar with a Reyn Spooner and shorts on, the whole diner goes quiet and those eating give you a long stare. Something tells me they knew I was from California. I spent most of the day people-watching while realizing the cruise was approaching the finish line.
(Thursday) September 21 – Home again
Jennifer and I have been home for over a week now and our suitcases are still in the middle of the living room. My gut feeling is that these huge cruise ships shouldn’t be allowed to run these routes, as it is just wrong in so many ways. It reminded me of a sunny Sunday afternoon when all of our harbor cruise ships travel through the five-point area of our harbor one after another. Ellena’s concept of ferries and small excursion boats is one option. If an Alaska cruise is on your bucket list, I recommend going sooner rather than later. Be sure to add a second week to your vacation, because you might catch COVID – all of us did. I came away from the cruise recognizing that the time spent with Jennifer was priceless. For years, Jennifer joined us after the Mexico, Hawaii, and Bay Area races, but I took this as vacation time with her while I was chasing the crew around. The one-on-one time with her is something I will strive to achieve in the future. I’m thinking of Four Seasons Resorts now, rather than cruise ships.
Harbor 20 fleet championships this weekend, so wish us luck!
Sea ya.
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Len Bose is a yachting enthusiast, yacht broker and harbor columnist for Stu News Newport.
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