The Margerie Glacier (the pretty one) was 250 feet high. Another 150 feet of that is below water, and it is a mile wide. In 1966 the dirty Glacier, the Grand Pacific, had retreated almost to the Canadian border, 3-4 miles away. The Canadians were thrilled, thinking they would have a new port but it has since grown. Margarie moves FORWARD 6-8 feet per day! Take THAT, Global Warming fans!
Matt had an excellent post-return idea: he said to wait for hot weather (okay, for us that means 2011!!) and throw a glacier-themed party to show off your photos. You can have little ice cubes shaped like ice bergs or ships!
Tom had found a stone on his mother's grave that he had kept and he left it at the John Hopkins Glacier. The John Hopkins Glacier is growing and it seemed the appropriate place to show respect for her memory.
There are researchers who live in tents on Johns Hopkins who study the sea otter and harbor seals. Ships can't come within five miles, because of breeding. As of July 15, a ship this size or smaller can go into the bay for Johns Hopkins. Big ships can come in after Sept 1 and it is closed for entry in April. We were five miles away when we saw the glacier and yet it looked immense! I can't imagine what it would be like to be at the face. It is 250 feet wide at the base and 12-14 miles long.
We watched a brown bear feeding on a whale carcass that had washed up. After one bear had his fill, he wandered off a short distance, dug a hole, flopped on his side and went to sleep!
Add more eagles, puffin and goat to the critter list! The Naturalists are listing the birds and animals we've seen and marking it on our travel map. We saw a young eagle.These are a recent addition to the area so for years the eagles here nested on the rocks, and are still seen doing that despite the presence of trees now. The one we saw, though, was in a tree. The puffins were floating on the water, and I saw a mountain goat on the hillside. Most of those are beyond the ability of my lens, but it doesn't matter. I can see them with my eyes and through binoculars and the point is, I saw them.
There was an earthquake in this bay, Tidal Inlet, in 1898 that created a tidal wave and destruction when the side of the mountain came down. One on the other side created a tidal wave 1700 feet high! Scientists have studied this area and say it is going to come down again. I surely don't want to be on a cruise ship in the area when that occurs!
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