Glacier Bay Boat Tour - Glacier Bay National Park

 

The Glacier Bay Lodge operates a daily tour boat providing an 8-hour excursion into the far reaches of Glacier Bay. A lunch consisting of a sandwich and chips is included in the fare. Passengers can begin boarding at 6:50 AM and the boat leaves the dock at 7:15 AM. It returns by 3:30 PM to allow visitors to leave the tour boat and be transported back to the Gustavus airport in time to catch the afternoon Alaska Air flight to Juneau. All bus transfers are free, but tips are accepted. The lodge is only open during the short season from Memorial Day to Labor Day and the tours only operate during this season as well. We took an excursion in late August 2022.

The boat we were on is an aluminum catamaran named St Juvenaly. Constructed in 1996 with engines rated at 2200 horsepower, it has a draft of less than three feet and is certified for 150 passengers. It is about 26 feet wide and 80 feet long with two decks. Besides the small crew, a park interpretive ranger acts as an educator and tour guide. Our ranger was Billy and he was the best guide we've ever had at any national park. Although he sees this park by boat or cruise ship multiple times per week, he still conveyed that sense of newness and awe throughout the day. Part of that may have been due to our trip being his last scheduled trip on the day boat for the season, but I got the feeling from the crew that he always had the same sense of wonder and inspiration every trip.

The cruise began with very low clouds obscuring the view

Steller Sea Lions

Cormorants and Mew Gulls nest on South Marble Island

More Steller sea lions at South Marble Island

A flock of Black-legged Kittiwakes

North Marble Island in the clouds

Sebree Island

Kayakers on the rocky shore of Sebree Island

An unnamed waterfall

Clouds slowly rising

Rockslide aftermath

An unnamed stream flows into the bay

Temperate rainforest

Black Cap Mountain (3321 feet)

Russell Island (above the boat) and the Fairweather Mountains (30 miles)

Topeka Glacier (25 miles)

A private boat at anchor near the unnamed outlet of Vivid Lake

The clouds are finally clearing to reveal Glacier Bay

Folded layers of rock revealed by glacial carving

A coastal brown bear grazing on a gravel bar

Another look at Topeka Glacier

Mount Quincy Adams (13620' 22 miles in front) and Mount Fairweather (15325' 25 miles)

The Norwegian Encore (20 decks, 4000 passengers, 1700 crew) seems very small in the bay

Johns Hopkins Inlet to the left and Tarr Inlet to the right

Reid Glacier

The still waters of Glacier Bay

Lamplugh Glacier

Johns Hopkins Glacier below Mount Wilbur (10821') and Mount Orville (10495')

Another view

Gilman Glacier (tidewater at left) and Johns Hopkins Glacier (tidewater at center)

Retreating glaciers leave bare rock behind

Closer view of Johns Hopkins Glacier

A final look at Johns Hopkins Glacier

Ranger Billy pointing toward the ranger station

There is no entrance fee at Glacier Bay National Park.

The Glacier Bay National Park website is https://www.nps.gov/glba/index.htm.