DAY FOUR
Of all the sights that we were scheduled to see on this cruise, today’s expedition was the one that I was most looking forward to: Tracy Arm Fjord. My expectations were further heightened by comments from the crew, saying of all the destinations on this itinerary, this fjord was their favorite, hands down. It didn’t disappoint.
You’ll want to be up around 6 a.m. this morning to get the full effect. That’s when the Chichagof Dream started her journey into the glacially-carved fjord. Sheer facades of 4,000-foot granite cliffs rose on both sides of the ship. As she slipped deeper and deeper into the mist-shrouded canyon, the walls began to narrow. Waterfalls cascaded down on either side. The fjord’s water transitioned from an jade green to an aquamarine blue. All along the way, ice floes bobbed in the water. Their varied shades of blue were nearly indescribable. Keep a close lookout for harbor seals and bald eagles sitting on the ice. Toward the end of the chute, it split – South Sawyer Glacier was to the right and North Sawyer Glacier was to the left. This is the point where large cruise ships had to stop, and passengers would only see what comes next by paying for a third-party excursion. But we pressed on.
Just when I thought the scene couldn’t get any more spectacular, the ship rounded the corner, and my family and I got our first glimpse of North Sawyer Glacier – impressive, imposing, and simply stunning. It looked like a massive wall of quartz bathed in boundless hues of blue. For most of the next three hours, we had it to ourselves. We broke up into groups and boarded two DIBs for 45-minute rides to the two waterfalls that frame the entrance to the glacier. Then we approached the glacier slowly, being careful not to get too close in case of falling, or calving, ice. Each family took turns taking next year’s holiday card photo, plus single shots of all the kids. We returned to the ship feeling exhilarated and totally satisfied.
On the DIB rides, the staff pulled out small chunks of glacial ice from the water. Some of this ice went to the kids’ activities director. The kids painted the chunks with watercolors, creating rainbow ice. The other chunks went to the bartender who chopped up the ice and concocted a kiddie cocktail and an adult-version called Glacierita. Yes, I just had to sample.
