Alaskan Adventure: Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska

Our fourth stop on our Alaskan adventure was Glacier Bay National Park, something we had been looking forward to since booking our cruise.

 

We spent the entire day in Glacier Bay National Park, picking up a team of rangers at the entrance to the park, and proceeding up the bay to stop at the Johns Hopkins Glacier and the Margerie Glacier.

The morning mists veiled distant icy peaks as we sailed into the heart of 3.3 million acres of pristine wilderness. 

The sun soon burned off the fog and mist, uncloaking jagged, snow-covered peaks and icy blue water.

For the first time on the trip, passengers were allowed out on observation decks 4 & 5, which are crew spaces. 

The views were spectacular.

Approaching the glaciers, you could see chunks of ice floating on the bay.  

Harbor Seals  took refuge with their pups on these "bergy bits," and Sea Otters floated with their babies on their tummies.

The Margerie Glacier, a river of ice flowing from Canada to the US, was stunning.

We spotted a Grizzly Bear not far from the glacier.  All around us was pristine wilderness, unimaginably beautiful.

Smaller vessels carried tourists to the foot of the Johns Hopkins Glacier, giving a sense of scale to the massive stacks of ice.

You can see how the glacier flows like a river, just much more slowly.

Do you feel inspired by the landscape?  I hope you'll draw or paint using these photos as your reference.

Many thanks to David of Long Story Short Photography for use of these photos.

Happy Creating!