Bears, Bubble Nets & a Little Southeast Alaska Weather

This week, Alaska finally decided to act like Alaska.

Well… sort of.

We started the week with bright sunshine, blue skies, and even a heat advisory in Juneau. Apparently, Southeast Alaska decided it wanted to experience summer after all. The sun stuck around for most of the week, making for some very happy guests—and some very tired guides. Turns out, being outside in the sunshine all day is exhausting when your office is a moving boat.

But before the sunshine really took over, we got a little taste of classic Southeast Alaska weather with some fog around the Inians and George Island.

And honestly, I love a little fog.

The large rock where the Steller sea lions like to hang out was almost completely hidden until we were practically right on top of it. It made for a fun little surprise for the guests as the rocks and hundreds of sea lions suddenly appeared out of the mist.

And the sea lions were putting on quite a show.

They were swimming right up to the skiff to investigate us, playing in the currents, barking, and generally doing what sea lions do best: being loud, curious, and entertaining. It also made for some pretty fun skiff-driving conditions! I even got the chance to drive my own skiff while narrating at the same time, which is one of my favorite parts of the job. There is something particularly satisfying about being able to drive, navigate, spot wildlife, and tell stories all at once.

Then the sun came out in full force.

Glacier Bay was, once again, absolutely beautiful. It wasn't quite as clear as the previous week, so our early-morning wake-up in front of Johns Hopkins Glacier wasn't quite the dramatic reveal we were hoping for. In fact, the fog made the glacier pretty difficult to see at first.

But that's the thing about Alaska—you just have to be patient.

Eventually, the fog began to lift, and by the time we reached Lamplugh Glacier, we were ready to get outside and explore.

We had plenty of guests kayaking and several heading ashore. Because of the combination of activities, we were also able to offer something that isn't always available in Glacier Bay: a 40-minute skiff tour.

For the guests who weren't able—or didn't want—to go ashore, this was a fantastic way to still get out and experience the park from the water. We cruised along the shoreline and even rounded a little corner to check out a waterfall.

But the real surprise came when we were getting ready to leave.

We looked back toward the glacier one more time, and there it was.

A coastal brown bear walking directly in front of the glacier.

And not just any bear in any ordinary setting. There was a little bit of fog hanging around, the blue of the glacier was glowing through the low light, and the bear was walking along the moraine in front of it.

It was absolutely spectacular.

I think it's safe to say that was one of my favorite wildlife moments of the entire season so far. There are some scenes that simply don't look real, and watching a brown bear stroll across a glacier landscape was definitely one of them.

And luckily, that wasn't our last bear encounter of the trip.

We also visited Kasnyku, better known as Hidden Falls Hatchery, where the salmon run is now in full swing. And where there are salmon, there are bears.

Lots of bears.

The bears were hanging out around the salmon ladder, taking full advantage of the buffet. We even spotted a couple of very young cubs. They were a few years removed from being completely independent from Mom, but they were absolutely adorable and already starting to explore their surroundings and becoming bolder.

We also found an older bear with distinctive blond-tipped ears. It was one of those little details that makes identifying individual animals so much easier. In a place with a lot of bears, having a unique feature like that makes it much easier to keep track of who's who.

Another highlight this week was getting the tides just right for a visit to Basket Bay.

Basket Bay itself is a beautiful, classic U-shaped Southeast Alaska fjord, but tucked away at the back is an incredible little grotto that you can explore by kayak—and, with the right tide, by skiff.

And I mean the right tide.

If the tide isn't cooperating, the grotto simply isn't accessible, and the rest of the bay suddenly seems a little less exciting. But when the timing is perfect, you can slip inside and explore this hidden little corner of the coastline.

It is one of those places that reminds me why I love expedition guiding. There is something incredibly satisfying about watching the tide tables, figuring out the timing, and then getting to take guests somewhere they simply couldn't reach a few hours earlier.

We also had a few cruising afternoons where the goal was simply to go looking for wildlife.

And we found some good ones.

Among them was a humpback whale that was bubble-net feeding.

We were able to hang out and watch it for about 30 minutes, which is always an incredible experience. Watching a humpback lunge toward the surface with its enormous mouth wide open, surrounded by a frenzy of fish and screaming gulls trying to steal a meal, never gets old.

And this time, the water was calm enough that we could actually see the bubble ring forming beneath the surface.

That was especially cool because the bubble ring essentially gave us a preview of where the whale was going to come up next. It made it much easier to direct guests where to look, rather than everyone staring at the ocean and hoping they guessed correctly.

Eventually, though, the sunshine had to end.

The final two days brought us the weather Southeast Alaska is much more famous for:

Rain.

And honestly, the guides were thrilled.

It has been such a dry summer that we've really started noticing the effects in the forest. Every time we head out on a bushwhack, the normally lush forest floor has been noticeably drier. So when the rain finally arrived, we were more than happy to see it.

The guests?

Not quite as enthusiastic.

A fair number decided that the best activity for a rainy day was actually not doing an activity at all. There were quite a few people who opted to stay aboard the big boat, stay warm and dry, and catch up on their reading instead.

And honestly, I can't blame them.

But even with the rain, Southeast Alaska still delivered some wildlife highlights.

In North Hoonah Sound, a humpback whale made a slow, beautiful pass right by the skiff. There is something particularly special about a whale that isn't in a hurry. When they take their time swimming past, everyone gets a chance to watch, photograph, and appreciate just how enormous these animals really are.

Then, in Nakwasina Sound, the rain brought out a whole assortment of birds. Sometimes bad weather can actually make for some pretty great birding, and the sound was alive with activity.

By the time we reached Sitka, the rain had disappeared. The cloud cover kept things cool, making for a surprisingly pleasant turnaround day.

And now?

It's time to head back out.

New guests, new itinerary, new expectations—and hopefully a few new adventures waiting around the corner.

That's the fun of expedition guiding. You can study the tides, watch the weather, plan the route, and have a pretty good idea of what the day might look like…

…but Alaska always gets the final say.

And honestly, I wouldn't want it any other way.

Coastal Brown Bear walking in front of Lamplugh Glacier in Glacier Bay National Park.

Grotto in Basket Bay.

Coastal Bear Bear Cubs looking down at other bears at Hidden Falls Hatchery in Kasnyku.

Looking back at the boat around a piece of ice with Lamplugh Glacier in the background in Glacier Bay.