Day 4 Admiralty Dream in Tracy Arm

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Tuesday, September 3, 2013

We entered Tracy Arm before 6am. I was awake or dozing between 4am and 6am and there was always land close by outside. There were a surprising number of boats out overnight until we entered Tracy Arm. There is not much animal life in here. We’ve only seen one gull-like bird and one small or juvenile seal curled up on an iceberg.

Wake up was by Lynette today at 6:30am and breakfast at 7am. Clay had a bagel with cream cheese and lox. I had raspberry yogurt and oatmeal with a banana and maple syrup. They also have something called spruce tips syrup but we haven’t tried it. The oatmeal was a mistake I won’t repeat. It came with a ball of stiff oatmeal sticking up out of a small bowl, like ice cream. What the heck? She sliced the banana before she brought it. I ate it.

We arrived at South Sawyer Glacier during breakfast. It was spectacular and only a few, no more than 2 dozen, people got out to see it. Then as people were coming out from breakfast, they called us all to the lounge for the safety briefing. So, at the most scenic spot we’ve seen yet, here we’re sitting in a room that we can’t see out. While we were watching it calved 3 or 4 times, though it was remarkable how long it took the sound to reach us and then how much longer it took the big wave to reach us. Distances and size are difficult to gauge here. Everything seems larger and farther than you think.

In the briefing, they told us how we would do the DIB rides today. We are divided into 4 groups. Clay & I are in C, or 3. So, we won’t go until 10am, no 11 to 11:45am, no finally it was 11:15am to 12:15pm. Oh, DIB. Demaree Inflatable Boat. It is like a zodiac. While we were in the lounge, they moved the ship. It was really a cold wind coming off the glacier, so I went and put on extra layers and headed back up to watch glacier calving while the others took their DIB rides, but the glacier was gone! We’re in a dark green little cove, around the corner I suppose. We’re bobbing here like in a tender and I feel awful. Hopefully I won’t get any worse before our DIB turn. They are also sending out 2 kayak groups today, but experts only today. Not that I want to do it, but no beginners today. Oh, we were told that cold wind is a glacial katabatic wind.

It is 9:15am and they haven’t serviced our cabin yet. I wish they would because I would take a nap here is this dark, bobbing cove with nothing to see before 11am. Oh well. Here comes the first of the tour boats up the Arm. More later.

We finally nosed around and out enough to see the glacier again, but not enough for the wind to blow the bugs off. It is nearly 11am and the 2^nd DIB group is nowhere in sight yet, but the good news is our cabin has finally been serviced. Our washcloths are back. If ever a morning begged for a nap this was it! But, we tried to stay out as a courtesy to keep from delaying him, but he was delayed by something anyway. Also, they have new info sheets posted by Orbridge that takes away the 2^nd day of Hobart Bay. Lunch is posted. Lentil soup, beef stroganoff or curry chicken salad. There is always the option of a hamburger or a veggie burger.

We went on our DIB turn to the glacier from around 11:15am to around 12:15pm. Now allow me to feel sorry for myself. I was 7^th in line to go down from the 4^th deck staging area to the 1^st deck swim platform where the DIB was tied up. I want to say that every one of the Alaskan Dream Cruises staff and crew I have encountered really work to do whatever they can to ensure that every person is having an enjoyable experience all the time, but I suppose sometimes it is just impossible. This was one of those times. They loaded 6 people on the starboard side of the DIB. As 7^th, I was asked to go to the back of the port side to start filling it. There was a rope on the seat and a battery on the floor in front of it, so I thought it was the driver’s area. I stayed forward of it. I was asked to slide down as the last passenger and Lynette boarded and I did. I was sitting on the rope with my legs to the side of the battery. Then out over the battery. When the driver came back to start us off, he told me to move my feet so he could stand in that space by the battery to drive the boat. I tried to shift my legs to the forward side again but as we set off everyone in the line ahead of me turned sideways to face forward and I was shoved even further back. The good news was that there was an angled metal bar welded at the very back sticking out by the side of the outboard that I was eventually supported by as I sat on the wet coil of rope with my feet on top of the battery and my knees as close to my chest as the life vest would allow. All that sounds uncomfortable and it was. But then the glacier started calving. The guides were ecstatic, it was the most active calving they had ever seen, no exaggeration. I couldn’t see a thing. Lynette was in the middle of the front of the boat, so no view there. There were at least 7 people in front of me all leaning either left or right and I could not lean  further than them because the driver was there and I was clinging to a pole standing up off the back of the boat trying not to get crammed all the way off as everyone in front kept resituating themselves for optimum views. The driver understood that I couldn’t see anything and told me he was sorry  but he had to keep the nose straight on to the glacier as the big waves came. He was woo-hooing as we rode about 6 or more big rolling waves created by the ice displacement or splash. The waves must have been at least 10 feet high, maybe more, probably more, they were well over our heads as they came at us. (When I asked him later, Ken said they were about 6 feet high. At least, I could see they were over his head as I saw them coming at us from behind him!) The driver radioed back to the ship to warn the galley staff to brace for the ride. I still probably would have been okay, but by this time I was getting sick from sitting 15 inches from the outboard engine’s exhaust. I sucked exhaust fumes for the better part of an hour as we maneuvered around to see things and to stay clear of ice and head on to waves. I was sick and not just motion sick, I think I got a carbon monoxide overdose. I needed help to get in bed when we got back and I was still trying not to hurl. I passed out for about 2 hours. Clay was upset because they were serving lunch when we got back. He wanted me to go but there was no way I could sit up much less sit up and eat while we continued to bob around. I just wrapped a blanket around myself and laid in the buggy open breeze from our window and knocked out. At some point Clay came back in and said he couldn’t eat in there by himself and I said I’m sorry but you’ll have to. He came back again and said he would go sit out front, I said OK. He asked if he could have my kettle corn and I said take it with you and go watch the glacier. He did. When he came back about 2 hours later I was awake and needed to pee. He said he hadn’t not seen any more calving activity. I saw some out the window. I guess our DIB group still won the award for best viewing. All but me, and I saw only one calving. When we got back to the ship, it was positioned so that the port side and front had a perfect view of the whole event, including our DIB bronc-riding. I told Clay if I get seated out over the engine again, I’ll just refuse the ride and stay onboard. The other passengers that were onboard and outside viewing gave us a round of applause as we tied up the DIB to reboard the ship.

There were a lot of harbor seals out there near the glacier floating around on the pieces of ice. I guess that was a young harbor seal that we passed on the way up here. The closest one we saw was rolled over scratching his belly, ho-hum another day at the glacier. The kayaks were out there. Another DIB or zodiac from our sister ship, Alaskan Dream, as well as Alaskan Dream were all out in front of the glacier when it was so actively breaking up. The sun has continued to shine brightly with brilliant blue skies to go with the brilliant blue ice.

Alaskan Dream showed up about 4 hours after us and left around 2pm I guess. They were gone when I woke up from my recovery nap. They must have had lunch right in front of the glacier and given all their 40-some passengers a ride in their inflatable and then left. It has been a beautiful and amazing day, what I have been able to enjoy of it. I may try to get on my feet again soon and see about a snack in the lounge and if they have the dinner menu up. While still a little queasy and headachy, believe it or not I am a little hungry. I did eat a handful of cinnamon almonds when I got up to pee though so I should be fine. I have a full view of the glacier now from my bed and there is no one else out there. All the other boats are gone, including our DIB and kayaks. I am guessing that must mean it is about time for us to sail out of the Tracy Arm.

I’m back. I got to the lounge right after the fresh baked chocolate chip cookies did! I brought back a little plate of goldfish and 2 chocolate chip cookies. A big warm one for Clay and a little one for me with the goldfish. For about the next fifteen minutes the water was perfectly calm and glassy and reflecting all the colors of the rock mountain side with the sun shining on it now instead of behind it and it was magical. Now though the wind is back and the water is too rippled to reflect, at least for the moment though the rolling and bobbing has stopped. Clay asked me what was for dinner. I stuck my elbows out and explained how I had gotten the cookies and goldfish and had to call that a success without making it over to the posted menus. Maybe next trip when I return the little plate.

Clay wanted another cookie after Jon’s voice announced them so enticingly in our cabin. Dinner tonight is seafood chowder, and seared duck, scallops Provencal or sesame crusted grilled tofu. There is an always available menu of steak, chicken breast (which I had 2 nights ago and it was better than expected), garden salad or baked potato.

Jon is now on the intercom explaining the “time machine effect” of the landscape and flora of the 32 miles of Tracy Arm.  Jon’s joke was about lichen. A symbiotic hybrid plant of an algae which takes a likin' to a fungi. I love puns!

We are well underway back out Tracy Arm and we had a forgotten bumper from a small orange boat that spent the day tied up under our window. I was on my way up to the bridge to ask them if it should still be dragged, bouncing along there when someone pulled it up and I found the bridge closed. It is too bad because that and outside are the only forward viewing spots. As we left, a small HAL ship assumed our position. We also passed a small Allen Marine Saint-something tour boat making a fast run up to the South Sawyer Glacier.

We just passed an NCL ship in Tracy Arm! I would guess that is where the St.-something had picked up its passengers.

Lee has just announced that Social hour has begun. It is 5:30pm. The drink special tonight is bergie bits martini. We knew something like that was coming because as I returned from the bridge door earlier, I passed Jon struggling out of the restaurant and down our hall to the lounge with a big clear growler in a large plastic tub. No thanks after the display of glacier worms we saw at the Glacier Bay Visitors Center. Lee announced the hors d’oeuvres tonight is shrimp & avocado and is going fast. Jon is now announcing a contest for an undecided prize. You have to go to the lounge and fill out a slip with your guess for the date and time the ice berg on the bar will completely melt. Lynette on the DIB told us that a bergie bit was defined as being over 18 feet long and 6 feet tall (which I had never heard before) which she said made most of what we were seeing growlers. Jon is calling the torso-sized bit of ice he hauled to the lounge and placed on the bar a bergie bit, which by Lynette’s definition would be an impossibility. Clay went to the lounge to try to place his entry and came back disgusted. I told him he could make 2 entries and use my name and have the prize no matter what it is. He said there 20 people around 3 sheets taking 20 minutes to decide and write their guess. He said several people had already guessed the 2^nd and we had a good laugh about the competition for the prize being reduced since today is the 3^rd! He went out again as Jon said we were passing a big bend and the chum salmon spawning stream. Earlier we passed a perfect green u-shaped glacially carved valley with a river and an unseen glacial lake that he said was sockeye salmon spawning territory. It is a wonder we didn’t see any eagles here. Clay was back pretty quickly. He said he found an undiscovered sheet in the middle of the lounge and only put his guess not mine. He said he might go back later and put a guess from me on a different sheet. He put me down for 7pm Thursday and himself down for noon Thursday. I’ll keep you posted.

Clay has hat envy. I made him what we both thought was the perfect hat. He doesn’t like hats much, he says his head gets too hot. So I used a relatively fine wool and a size 7 needle to make what I thought would be a mostly waterproof but breathable hat with no cuff to turn back. My hat is a chunky wool/acrylic knitted on the same size needle with a cuff to help keep my ears warm as well as my head. Clay for some reason had my hat and complained that I that made myself a better hat than him. I explained my thoughts and he said he needs one like mine with some of that chunky black acrylic yarn that is left over from the sweater I left knitted but unconstructed at home. I promised him one. So, this is proof that there is no perfect hat. Only the hat you don’t have. I let Clay wear my hat today out on the DIB and he proclaimed it far superior to his once perfect hat and I wore my Kmart earband with my fleece hood and at one point my rain jacket hood as well. I was never too cold and had layers to knock back as I got increasingly nauseated and distressed. It all worked out.

We sat at our usual front-facing, rear of the dining room seats again. This time we sat with the couple from Jackson, MS again. They are in the cabin directly across the hall from us, too.  I had feta and Greek olive salad (not so much) and sesame crusted tofu with wild rice pilaf and it was good. I liked it. Clay had the salad as well and duck. He liked it. For dessert they had chocolate pot de crème with a spoon outline dusted on it and it was very good. Everyone liked it, but Clay had a bowl of chocolate ice cream.

We had a mandatory safety briefing in the lounge after dinner. It was about our recreational day in Hobart Bay. This is a facility privately owned by Goldbelt, a Tlingit enterprise, that also owns the Mt. Roberts Tramway. Alaskan Dream Cruises has an exclusive contract for the use of the location. We arrived at the dock in Hobart Bay after the meeting and woke up docked there. They made everyone sign a waiver accepting personal responsibility for themselves on account of themselves and all heirs, descendants, etc. Then Ernie handed out color coded lanyards for everyone that had your scheduled rotation of activities on it. As well there was an extra dawn kayak run and a morning and afternoon hike. We got assigned to the red group and our rotation is 7:15am Zego. This is a personal watercraft or 2-person watercraft, but not a JetSki. It is like a go cart on pontoons. 10:30am we have RTV which like a cross between an ATV and a golf cart. 2:15pm we have kayaks. Good because we are most iffy about that one. Lunch is I think from noon to 2pm as an open self-serve buffet. Wake up is 6:15am instead of 6:30am and breakfast is 6:45am instead of 7am. The questions included about the promised onboard boots and Jon said he had never used them here but they were under the benches in the lounge if people wanted or needed them. He thought no one would need them except for maybe on Zegos. Lynette said that in about 2 nights there was a higher aurora forecast and if we wanted Adam to wake us up if there was notable activity we could sign up for that and we did. Jon also explained that the waitstaff/cabin stewards also work to lead expeditions tomorrow and so if we could give them a break and tidy our own cabins it would be appreciated and to let them know by leaving our no knock knots on our door handles. We put ours out and went to bed.

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