Day 1: Arrive Anchorage
Arrive in Anchorage and take a taxi to your downtown inn. The remainder of the day is yours to explore.
Accommodations: Copper Whale Inn or Similar
Included Meals: N/A Day 2: Anchorage to Whittier, Embarkation
At 10:00am, board the Alaska Railroad passenger car (check in at least an hour early) for a comfortable scenic ride along the Turnagain Arm, known for it’s tremendous tidal flats and frequent sightings of Beluga Whales. Continue through the Chugach mountains to rendezvous with the captain and crew in Whittier for a warm welcome abroad the Discovery. While the crew prepares for departure, relax in the Discovery's cozy salon and enjoy specially prepared appetizers of fresh seafood chowder, salmon or halibut spread with crackers, fresh baked breads, fruits, and a plentiful selection of fine beverages. Leave Whittier at 1:00 pm for Port Nellie Juan, Alaska's own unpeopled seacoast Yosemite with towering granite mountains, lush rainforest vegetation, countless rivers and waterfalls, and massive thundering glaciers. Upon arrival, the Discovery crew secures a safe anchorage and launches the inflatable "zodiacs" for an "up close" guided exploration of the surrounding shores and colossal tidewater face of the Nellie Juan glacier. Visit with the rich and diverse marine and bird life of Nellie Jaun lake; Harbor Seals, Sea Otters, Arctic Terns, Harlequin Ducks, Surf Scoters, Kittiwakes, and Oystercatchers to name but a few. Step ashore for an "other-worldly" experience of walking about hundreds of huge icebergs, stranded along the lakeside shore by the ebbing tides. Like an outdoor art studio, these sculpted formations exhibit natures artistic hand and beautiful forming processes. Return to the Discovery for an exquisite dinner waiting of fresh baked local sockeye salmon, halibut fillet stuffed with crab in cheese sauce, fresh breads, rice pilaf, vegetables, fancy dessert dinner wine and other beverages. Meanwhile the Discovery travels to an evening anchorage in one of the Sound's many intimate and secluded coves.
Accommodations: Discovery Yacht
Included Meals: Lunch and Dinner Day 3: Chenega Glacier
Mornings aboard the Discovery are usually relaxed and casual. An "open" breakfast served from 7:00am till 10:00am works well with guests from various time zones and individual morning routines. Enjoy warm fresh breads, muffins, rolls, fruits, cereals, omelets cooked to your liking, juices and other beverages. Underway in the morning, the Discovery sails through Knight Island Passage and Dangerous Passage towards Icy Bay. Some of the Sound's most frequent Orca and Humpback Whale sightings are found along this route, keep your eyes peeled for dorsal fins and blow spouts. At mid-day the Discovery navigates her way through Icy Bay's, Nassau Fjord. Several miles of icebergs and brash ice (smaller pieces of glacial ice) lay between the fjord entrance and the massive, calving face of Chenega Glacier, named after the local native community of Chenega. The massive 200 square mile Sergeant Ice field funnels ice down a wide mountain valley, forming a one mile long, 200 foot high wall that topples giant blue chunks into the sea. This active tidewater glacier, with its daunting size and mammoth sounds, offer a remarkable opportunity to experience firsthand the tremendous natural forces that move these spectacles of nature. Hundreds of harbor seals make Icy Bay their summer home, using the floating ice as resting platforms and safe places for birthing. The rocky mountainsides around Chenega Glacier support a healthy, frequently visible population of mountain goats, binoculars serve as helpful aids in sighting these skillful mountain climbers. After lunch, the Discovery exits this ice-laden fjord for Bainbridge Passage, where you can try your luck fishing for Pacific Halibut. (Historically this has been a productive fishing area.) Late afternoon and early evening provide opportunities for more Orca and Humpback whale watching. If successful, you'll pass this helpful information on to the local whale researchers of the North Gulf Oceanic Society. Enjoy a relaxing dinner while the Discovery travels south along Knight Island, into the uncharted narrows of Long Channel for the evening's anchorage.
Accommodations: Discovery Yacht
Included Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner Day 4: Prince William Sound Exploration
Underway at 7:00am, the "unhurried" morning theme of a relaxed and casual breakfast awaits your flexible wake up time. Cruising northwest through more "sea pastures" fertile with whale watching opportunities the Discovery courses toward a noisy and raucous Steller Sea Lion haulout. These entertaining creatures put on quite a display, some show off their graceful water acrobatics while others roar and beller, or recline lazily upon the large rocky shore. After a short visit with the sea lions, travel turns westward towards the impressive Cascade Waterfall, with lunch served along the way. Those wanting to stretch their legs can take the short zodiac ride ashore for a guided hike to the top of this 300 foot high thundering waterfall. Walk through the world's northern-most temperate rain forest, rich with ferns, mosses, and towering Spruce, Hemlock and Cedar trees. Later in the day travel the remote shores of Eaglek Bay to visit the oyster farm of David and Susan Sczawinski. Oyster lovers will enjoy one of the Sound's most delicious sea products. Upon leaving Eaglek Bay the Discovery makes a brief stop near one of the many small islands, home to a colony of Tufted Puffins, thought by many visitors to be Alaska's most adorable seabird. Continuing westward through Wells Passage enjoy a dinner of fine beef steak, expertly prepared fresh oysters, complimented by vegetables, fresh breads, fancy dessert, dinner wine and other beverages. Set course northward through the quiet and beautiful narrows of Esther Passage to the fringes of College Fjord for the evening's anchorage.
Accommodations: Discovery Yacht
Included Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner Day 5: College Fjord
Awake to a casual breakfast and an exciting day of some of the world's most spectacular scenery - corridors of breathtaking beauty, sprawling glaciers and a panoramic skyline of mountain grandeur. Harbor seals hauled out on the flotillas of icebergs watch closely as the Discovery navigates the icy, blue waters of Barry Arm. The enveloping mountains of this inlet stretch skyward to nearly 10,000 feet, with glacier after glacier descending the terraced mountain valleys. Alaska's lush rainforest vegetation drapes the hillsides in green as streaming waterfalls fall from the rocky cliffs. Listen to the cracks, pops and thunderous roars of the Cascade, Barry and Coxe glaciers while the Discovery, dwarfed by blue and white walls, drifts silently by these actively calving rivers of ice. For guests seeking a different perspective, the Discovery crew will launch the inflatable "zodiacs" for a guided exploration of this magnificent area. Touch the impressive face of Coxe glacier, watch the showy Black Oystercatchers strut across the rocky shorelines, sense the presence of the curious Hoary marmots and drink in the bright pinks of fireweed and the intense blues of the alpine lupine. Anchor in the area for the evening.
Accommodations: Discovery Yacht
Included Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner Day 6: Fjords, Glaciers and Bays
Spend the morning exploring the wonders of Harriman Fjord and Surprise Glacier. Hike along the shore among beached icebergs stranded by the ebbing tide. Or enjoy an upland hike at Point Doran, offering broad views of the Chugach mountain range and glacier-valleys. Enjoy lunch while the Discovery exits this magical place for the gentle waters of Blackstone Bay. Passing through Port Wells you're entertained by families of playful sea otters foraging the shellfish-rich shallow waters of their favorite feeding ground. As a protected species, these otters exhibit little concern for human presence, instead offering great opportunities for photos and up-close observations. Nature offers few chances to see animals in the wild as "cute" and adorable as these mothers with young pups. Enjoy a tasteful dinner while continuing southward to Blackstone Bay, and the evening anchorage beneath the mountain cliffs of Northland Glacier.
Accommodations: Discovery Yacht
Included Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner Day 7: Blackstone Bay, Whittier, Anchorage
Awake today immersed in a wilderness sanctuary of unparalleled natural beauty. Flanked by the verdant hills of summer, this beautiful bay hosts seven glaciers, two of which meet the sea, the others hang high among the rocky cliffs. Hundreds of feet up the mountainsides, glaciers avalanche huge ice chunks and pour cascading waterfalls to the sea below, their waves reverberating throughout the narrow confines of the fjord. Thousands of Black-Legged Kittiwakes shadow the sky while flying to and from their cliff-side nests. These spellbinding sights and dramatic sounds leave you humbled and feeling insignificant amidst this powerful living landscape. Relax in the salty ocean breeze and splendor of this special place while sipping a morning cup of hot coffee on the Discovery's deck. After enjoying the beauty of Blackstone Bay, depart mid-day for the port town of Whittier. Arrive at your downtown Anchorage inn this evening.
Accommodations: Copper Whale Inn or Similar
Included Meals: Breakfast and Lunch Day 8: Depart Anchorage
Take a taxi to the airport for your departure. |
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