An easterly wind previewed tomorrow’s storm but promised calm seas today, and our best chance for a Kenai Fjords kayak to Northwestern Glacier. Fiona, our park ranger and defacto professor for this floating teacher workshop, checked with Captain Rob about our plans for the day. A report from the Gyre, our sister ship and research vessel for this expedition, coupled with the morning weather report made the decision to travel to Northwestern Fjord an easy one.

It’s not every day that you get to wake up in a National Park, on a boat, with a dozen harbor seals distracting you at breakfast. I couldn’t believe three sea lions competed for fish or a black bear crawled down the slopes of Coleman Bay while we rocked back and forth. The crew made preparations for the trip to Northwestern and we were off after a quick meal.

This post shares the second half of Alaska Geographic’s Floating Teacher Workshop in Kenai Fjords National Park, read about kayaking in Aialik Bay and the beginning of this expedition here. Bookmark this post before you go by clicking save on any picture.

Contents

Traveling to Northwestern Fjord on the Dreamcatcher
Kenai Fjords Kayak Northwestern Fjord
A Seal Encounter Kayaking Kenai Fjords
Immersion Suits – Do it For the Story!
Northwestern Fjord Research with the Gyre
Photo Gallery: A Group of Seals
Kenai Fjords Tours and other Seward Wildlife Cruises
Kenai Fjords National Park Map
Recommended Reading for Alaska Travel & Hiking

Traveling to Northwestern Fjord on the Dreamcatcher

“Mild seas” was a relative term. We still faced seven-foot swells and although Captain Rob was rosy-eyed with a lack of white caps; a number of us succumbed to seasickness on the morning voyage. For a brief moment, I wasn’t sure I could handle the nausea and asked fellow teacher, Carol to grab me a trash bag. Fresh air and staring at the horizon kept the bag clean, convincing me to take Dramamine on our return; others were forced into far stickier straights.

Our wildlife cruise through Kenai Fjords had already been full of humpback whales, seals, sea lions, sea otters, and more. Days were filled with beautiful mountains and more islands than we could count as waves crashed on rocky sea lion rookeries. Two types of puffins watched the Dreamcatcher approach; these euclids dove when we were barely close enough to determine whether they were tufted or horned puffins. Cormorants and kittiwakes favored the jagged shoreline while common murres floated in large flocks.

We arrived in Northwestern Fjord in time for lunch and discovered surprisingly flat water given the morning waves. This narrow strait is well protected and hints of sunshine offered a prime opportunity for a Kenai Fjords kayak! Kate, our kayak guide, and Fiona were excited to take our group past a number of glaciers heading towards Northwestern Glacier in an attempt to circumnavigate nearby Striation Island. It was time for a longer kayak after our group successfully paddled through Aialik glacier ice, avoiding bergie bites and staying safe among the seals and waterfalls!

Kenai Fjords Kayak Northwestern Fjord

It was late afternoon by the time our flotilla was passing Anchor Glacier, a reconstituted glacier that made itself known with a thunderous echo as ice crashed from the upper half onto the rocks below. Reconstituted glaciers are split in two with an upper section containing original glacier ice and a detached lower section reformed into glacier ice after decades of icefalls.

Fiona called out the names and types of glaciers while we paddled, giving us a natural history lesson that I thoroughly appreciated. A hundred years ago these four glaciers were all connected and reached our present position, but today Sunshine Glacier was the furthest out holding watch on the westernmost corner of the fjord. Next, we passed Ogive Glacier, so named for its ogive, a glacier feature where the medial moraine flows more quickly than the lateral moraine causing a slight U-shape as it pushes down the valley.

The seas grew increasingly flat the further we traveled down this narrow fjord. Kate taught us a glacier kayaking rule of thumb: stay a minimum of a half-mile away from a calving tidewater glacier! That way if there is a significant calving you have time to react to incoming waves. But reconstituted, hanging and cirque glaciers don’t technically calve since they are no longer over water. That meant we could safely squeeze past Anchor and Ogive glaciers, but just to be safe, we paddled close to Striation Island.

Tides swelled lightly as our eyes traced striation lines in the rocky passage; these markings indicated ancient tectonic movement and captured our attention until brash ice started bumping into our kayaks. Northwestern Glacier appeared around the corner guarding the end of the fjord as a distant seal rested on a large growler with her pup. Her white fur captured our attention as much as we stole her gaze. She watched us closely putting a fin on her kin as a few other seals bobbed between the ice.

The closer we got to Northwestern Glacier, the more sun peaked through the clouds! The rain had stopped altogether and we found ourselves immersed in a dreamy panorama. Dramatic cliffs had a few snowy blankets left over from the winter while sunny mountainsides were already teeming with life. One seal chased another then followed a kayak before diving while his brethren bobbed near a small berg. Two kittiwakes landed on another ice chunk as mother and pup pairs continued appearing on swaths of ice.

Cloudy skies brought out a deeper blue in each glacial crevasse as a light sprinkle made sure we were damp even if we hadn’t splashed ourselves with the paddles. Both ice and seal density increased as we passed Striation Island and inched closer to Northwestern Glacier. The brash ice was easy enough to paddle through but formed a consistent layer floating with larger bergie bits and growlers interspersed. Traveling slowly helped keep us safe and let the seals feel safer with us around. Their curiosity kept them nearby.

A Seal Encounter Kayaking Kenai Fjords

A magical moment revealed itself as everyone stopped padding and just floated onward. Momentum carried everyone closer to a bergie bit with two marine mammals hauled out. Just ahead a speckled harbor seal watched us as her black pup napped. Her fin gripped the ice as she adjusted to see us better. Everyone was sure they would dive; we were too close! No one dared make a move and a dozen humans held their breath in a shared silence that will stay with each of us forever.

We gazed into two pairs of dark almond eyes and a moment of silence turned into minutes of meditation. The mother reached her fin out to her pup, this time patting the yearling with her flipper. I was astounded at the dexterity of what looked like fingers on the end of each fin. Flippers could grip the ice, scratch an itch, or fold together to gently groom her baby. I imagine this versatility allowed for immense underwater agility and snapped well over a hundred photos while we edged closer to this group of seals.

Did you know one name for a group of seals called a bob? Bob, herd, pod, rookery, harem, and colony can all be used as a name for a group of seals. My favorite of these collective nouns is bob.

The mother seal stretched forward with her head and tail raising while her belly rested. She formed a U on the ice and I was sure she was getting ready to dive, but she was just adjusting and quickly relaxed with her pup. Clearly, she had accepted us as a peaceful troupe. I dared whisper to Matt that I’d love to float to the right and frame Northwestern Glacier directly behind this seal pair. He gave a single gentle paddle as I pushed the rudder pedal framing my bucket list seal photo perfectly!

My jaw dropped as I came back to reality and understood the encounter we just had. I was wholly immersed in the experience and had completely forgotten that there were a dozen of us here. Glancing around wide-eyed, I noticed everyone else with the same awestruck expression. We nodded, grinning from ear to year, and slowly turned back towards the boat. Glancing back one more time I noticed another seal had arrived as we departed; it swam up to the ice with our new friends looking like it wanted to haul out; but after a few quick bobs and a head shake from the mom, it swam off.

Immersion Suits – Do it For the Story!

Star and Carol prepared yet another exquisite meal as we tried to explain how unbelievable our seal encounter was. Words didn’t do it justice but certainly helped the crew on the boat experience some envy. Seals and other wildlife stories came out over dinner as Tim managed a few overshares about his childhood misadventures. Something about a quarter, a laptop, and a very expensive orthodontics bill brought a burst of raucous laughter to the galley.

Between the laughter and the Dreamcatcher stories about bears in Katmai National Park, someone brought up the immersion suits we’d been trained in a few days prior. The seas were still calm after our kayak and Tim leaped at the opportunity to ask if we could don them and go for a swim!

“Gotta ask the captain,” one of the crew told him as I secretly hoped Rob would say we should wait until tomorrow. I had just warmed up, was well-fed, and was ready to wind down. When Tim told us we got the green light; Jessica asked if we could jump from the top deck and Moira insisted she wanted to go too. Kate, Carol, and Matt all wanted to swim in orange gummy suits as well. The peer pressure got to me and when Captain Rob came down to explain the rules; I knew I would be wearing one shortly.

“Do it for the story,” I thought to myself; the mantra a visiting alum first told me during my sophomore year of college. That motto with a “when in Rome” attitude had brought me countless memories thus far and I I knew that I could warm up again with a hot shower when we were done. Captain’s orders were to rinse and hang dry the suits later tonight then invert and hang dry again tomorrow before repacking them the following day.

We used an older set of training suits that in their hayday would likely keep someone alive for 24-36 hours in these chilly waters. Mine leaked a bit but the water quickly warmed coupled with my internal body temperature and the thermal suit.

Before I knew it seven educators wore matching insulated survival suits. We took turns jumping off the swim dock at the back before a voice chimed in, “Can we jump off the side of the boat?”

“Remember the position,” Katie and Rob insisted we protect ourselves with an elbow towards the boat and try to land vertically. One by one we climbed the railing on the lower deck and hopped in. This time I completely submerged before immediately bouncing like a buoy!

A gust of wind erupted from the neck of my suit while I recalled the other emergency position; propping the neck open since that air can cause serious injury; especially if you’re jumping from a few stories up off a capsizing vessel. I was ready to practice again on the lower deck when someone suggested going even higher to the middle deck. Star had her Cannon camera out and I passed my iPhone to Hilary to snap photos. As we all jumped in Fiona’s smile compared to our expressions as we saw the seals; she enjoyed snapping photos as much as we enjoyed jumping in.

You could probably predict that after we jumped off the middle deck, Tim and Kate led the charge at the upper deck where I chickened out. Well, I almost chickened out. I certainly thought about calling it quits but then realized I’d been cliff-diving at much higher depths. I just needed to make sure I didn’t freeze on the edge giving myself a chance to ponder my choices.

Others had battle cries or fearful shouts as they jumped, Tim trilled his best Chewbacca impression and Matt let out a Tarzan cry. I inched to the edge when it was my turn and knew I couldn’t hesitate. A quick count off, “One, two, THREEEEEE!” and I leapt; a mild hoot escaping my lips with Anchor and Ogive glaciers in the distance! Subconsciously, my feet ran through the air like a cartoon character before crossing at the last minute. Crossing your feet is an important part of the jump so you protect the important bits from any debris that might otherwise end up between your legs in a true emergency evacuation.

“Emergency evacuation drills from a variety of exits” continued with a few of us floating in the teal waters while laughter echoed throughout the ship. Tonight’s calm before the storm and the day’s exertion helped everyone get a good night’s sleep; tomorrow’s storm was nigh in our thoughts.

Northwestern Fjord Research with the Gyre

Sure enough, we woke up to rain spitting down and rougher seas than the day before. Everyone was grateful for the heating room that dried everything overnight. We ate a quick breakfast before joining the Gyre for the same series of research projects that we helped with in Aialik Bay.

Despite the rain, we were able to collect bivalve, crustacean, and polychaete worm samples so the team could extrapolate population densities and conduct various DNA analyses. The data would help scientists understand any changes that might be happening with climate change and how populations had responded these last decades since the Exxon Valdez oil spill.

Our work went quickly now that we didn’t need to be trained. Irritable weather urged us to finish up and return to the ship rather than dawdle hoping for another glimpse of wildlife. Most of us remained aboard the Dreamcatcher finishing up classwork or taking a nap. I journaled and worked on my photos opting out of the optional afternoon research session.

I reflected on the natural and social experiences I’d had over the past week. Alaska Geographic’s floating teacher workshop opened my eyes in more ways than I realized. Not only did I have an incredible physical experience with wildlife and mother nature coming out in full force, but I realized the potential of place-based education and the power of networking.

Talking with like-minded educators gave me optimism about the continuously diminishing state of education in our country. But this experience gave me an opportunity to hear from other fantastic teachers; to learn from them and see how they are enriching their classrooms. I look forward to my first nature-based unit next year and know that my colleagues will embrace some wacky new lessons if it means getting our students excited about nature.

I hope that this workshop will act as a springboard toward a network of nature lovers and educators who work with the community to raise a generation of students who will work hard to protect and responsibly recreate in parks around the world.

Photo Gallery: A Group of Seals

I always enjoy a wildlife cruise but especially enjoy wildlife photography! Kenai Fjords National Park is known for all the marine mammals and visitors especially come to see whales. But whales are notoriously difficult to photograph and after photographing so many groups of seals on this trip I can safely say that seals are more fun to take pictures of than whales!

Kenai Fjords Kayak at Northwestern Glacier with Alaska Geographic

When I was researching this article I realized that some people might be wondering about the seals. A common question turned out to be “Are there seals in Alaska?” Emphatically yes! There are seven different kinds of seals that can be found in Alaska: harbor seals, ribbon seals, ringed seals, fur seals, spotted seals, bearded seals, and elephant seals.

Kenai Fjords Tours and other Seward Wildlife Cruises

There are countless Kenai Fjords cruises to pick from. My personal favorite are small boat Kenai Fjords kayaking tours like the northwestern fjord tour that I wrote about here with the Dreamcatcher. But, the most accessible Kenai Fjord cruise is the Kenai Fjord boat tour through Major Marine or Kenai Fjords Tours. I always tell visitors “Go on the longest Kenai Fjords cruise that you can afford, both in terms of time and cost!” The longer you are out in the fjords; the higher the likelihood of seeing Kenai Fjords wildlife and the better chance you’ll have of seeing a calving glacier.

Dall’s Porpoise on a Kenai Fjords National Park Cruise

The best time to go on a Kenai Fjords National Park cruise is in the summer, but that means it will be much busier! Late spring or early summer is still shoulder season and a great time to beat the summer crowds on a Kenai Fjord boat tour. But truthfully, any time you go it will be amazing! I’ve had great luck seeing whales and calving glaciers from mid-April through August. Be sure to reserve your spot ahead of time, especially if you are going in the middle of the summer. I recommend traveling to Seward the night before so you can wake up and be ready to meet your boat at the dock!

Kenai Fjords National Park Map

The best way to get a kenai fjords national park map is to buy one online or at the ranger station. Do not rely on online Kenai Fjords Maps while visiting Kenai Fjords NP; cell phone and internet coverage is spotty at best. If you prefer a digital kenai fjords park map be sure to download it before you embark on your Kenai Fjords Tour but rest assured that any tour or guide you work with will have a map and take care of all the navigation for you.