Glacier Bay Alaska 8/27/05

Glacier Bay, AK 8/27/05

We are heading south out of the bay now, I think we just passed Blue Mouse Cove. The ship cruised up to the northern most point in the Bay, to the base of the Grand Pacific Glacier and, in my opinion the more impressive, Margerie Glacier.

I was one of the first out on the deck this morning to enjoy the view as we made our way up the bay; two layers of clothes on and a jacket, gloves, and my running headband covering my ears. I was still cold within 5 minutes but the view was so spectacular that the brain made the body stay out there for over 2 hours. After reaching the Margerie Glacier and seeing a huge sheet calve into the water I felt satisfied with the experience and got out of the way of the other spectators that had eventually packed in behind me on the front of the ship.

I just came in from round two of glacier watching. It has warmed up some now and the crowds have thinned, of course I mean that by numbers only. It is a cruise ship after all and food is one of the rare free things so I have a feeling no individuals will be getting thinner on this trip.

The ship is cruising closer to the shore now and people are around the railings scouring the coast line with binoculars fused to their faces hoping to see some “wild life fun”. I don’t have any binoculars but I also enjoy leaning against the railing and daydreaming as the scenery passes.

A lady next to me spotted some kayaks on the shore and with no animals around to occupy the other voyeurs they all turned their attention to the small boats and started verbally investigating where there occupants might be. Soon the paddlers were found on land and with the mystery solved the discussion around me now turned to “What are they doing out there?!”
“I think they are going to go hike on the Glacier! My lord they must be crazy!” a lady next to me muttered.
“You wouldn’t catch me in a boat that size in these waters that’s for sure!” Another retorted.

I just stood in silence wondering how I was on this side of the water and not the subject on the other end of their binoculars. All I could think was the people on the shore were really experiencing “it”. My fellow cruise shippers and I were just observing “it”. Oh well, next time I’ll do it right. It’s still better than sitting in WPB watching the Discovery Channel.

Yesterday was a good day for experiencing rather than just observing. We were in Skagway a little town of about 600 people. I was due for a good run so after getting some trail suggestions from Robyn, a crew member that works in the Spa who I met on the Juneau glacier trek, I set out for an 8 mile run not knowing exactly where that would take me or where I would end up.

It was another chilly gray day but no rain. I found the trail that Robyn had told me about but it only lasted about a mile and I soon found myself on a road. I was hoping the dirt and gravel trail that I started on would continue or at least pick back up again but it didn’t. The road turned out to be just as good though and with its nice wide shoulders the occasional tour busses that passed were not an issue. The road also made the hills easier to climb and since a day later I can still feel the workout from that run in my calves & shins that was probably a good thing.

The major highlight on the run was when 3 black bears crossed the road about 50 yards in front of me. I saw them from about 100 yards away but I couldn’t tell what they were. I was thinking they were dogs, which can usually be an interesting encounter when running in rural areas. I was slowly pondering what to do if they were dogs when I remembered I am in Alaska. Just as one part of my brain was thinking there are more dangerous animals here than farm house dogs another part had finally processed what exactly I was looking at and I stopped running right away.

The larger bear was standing in one of the lanes and looking around when the smaller 2 walked out of the forest, probably a mother and 2 cubs. They trotted across the road and down into the forest on the other side never really stopping to look at me.

I had been cautioned about crossing paths with bears in Alaska several times, especially mothers with cubs. Despite the HUGE thrill and wanting to see them a little closer I didn’t want to be the focus of a “Tourist Jogger Mauled By Bear” story. There was no one else around and I had to continue on that road to get to town so I just stood there for a long time before proceeding…and thinking the whole time “What a great run this is!!!”

I was still running high on my bear sighting as I started to approach Skagway again. It felt great to be running into town from the opposite direction of the boat and coming up on all the cruise ship tourists in their organized groups and busses. They all had this look on their face of “Where did you come from?” I passed a whole row of people on a “mountain bike tour” and yes they were riding at the time and no I am not a fast runner.

My run ended up covering a little over 9 miles with quick stops at Reid Falls and the Prospectors Cemetery. The legs were tired but the stomach was empty so I took a quick shower and then headed back into town. The cruise ship food might be free but I’m not that impressed with it.

Robyn had also recommended a place called the Haven Café. “It’s at the far end of town but they have great sandwiches and the crew likes to go there.” She said.
That sounded good to me and it turned out to be even more perfect than I could have imagined. It was a great sandwich shop/coffee house; a very “local” feeling. After eating my lunch I found an open couch and nestled in to read my new book for awhile.

Several hours and a double espresso later I decided it was time to see more of town. The legs had rested enough. God I love little places like the Haven; locals playing chess, random couches and chairs, used books and games on the shelves for you to peruse, a variety of flyers hanging in the window advertising things that only people in the neighborhood would understand or care about, and of course great music playing.

The music is usually CD’s owned by the eclectic staff that work there and their choice of music speaks for them since they could not possibly tell every customer their story. At the Haven Café, Jack Johnson’s Brushfire Fairytales album came on soon after I moved to the couch. I just smiled. Ahhh, what a great day I was having. I wanted to strike up a conversation with someone and tell them that I was going to see Jack Johnson in about 2 weeks in South Florida but then I knew my cover would be blown. They would know I was a cruise ship tourist!

After my success at the Juneau Public Library when I passed the Skagway Public Library I thought I d try my luck again at some free internet. Unlike Juneau though my fear here was not that they wouldn’t let me use the computer but rather they would not even have internet access. I mean the library was smaller than Philo’s and I’m sure the nearest town of any size was probably several mountains away. Like I’ve said many times though, the World guests smaller every day, not just in the random people you meet but in places like Skagway Alaska where in a tiny library one ring on a desktop bell gets you access to the World Wide Web and then everything is just a click away.

For example from the little Skagway Library I learned that my home in South Florida had just dodged another hurricane. Hurricane Katrina made landfall just South of Ft. Lauderdale; not a major threat to WPB in landfall or size. Notes from my friends basically said it was no big deal. Unfortunately I don’t think that is going to be the case for the gulf coast States as Katrina is heading towards them and looks to be gaining strength.

The boat was scheduled to leave Skagway at 8 p.m. That left me several more hours to pass even after having the great day that I had already had. I’m a coydog though and solo wandering is fine for awhile but eventually I need some social interaction. After several days of clean living I was in the mood for some good beers and conversations that you can only have with strangers in a bar.

I bellied up to the bar at a place called Bonanza. The Red Onion also looked promising but it looked more crowded with tour folks than regulars so I opted for Bonanza. (More cruise ship whining! I know, I know, I need to get my feelings and bitterness towards this cruise sorted out but I think I’ll put that off ‘til later…again. I’m having a good day!)

At Bonanza’s I met Meredith, the solo bartender running a 4 sided bar. I sat alone on one corner and had day dreamed through half a beer before she found time in her busy shift to start up a conversation. She later said she was confused at first which is why she started talking to me. I was zoning out on a pre-season football game between the Steelers and Redskins when I heard her say, “So do you work around here?”

Ahhh, thank you Meredith. “Nope, I’m on the cruise ship.” I said with a smirk.
She looked almost as surprised as Ben was when I told him I grew up in a town 7 miles from his. She gave me a side look and said “Really?! Didn’t anyone tell you people like you don’t go on those?!” I just laughed.

Through her busy servicing of the other people at the bar and a couple waitresses Meredith and I continued our conversation. She is working on her PHD in Anthropology and Fishery Management but bartends in the summer for the money. I told her how I had wound up on a cruise ship and my original goal of sea kayaking and camping. It turns out she is also a sea kayak guide. So now armed with the e-mail address of a bartending, sea kayak guide my brain is plotting my return to Alaska, this time not by cruise ship!

OK enough bashing of this boat. It does have some positive sides. The scenery is amazing! The ship also does provide for some moments of peacefulness as you sit on the deck and the mountains slowly pass. I’m going to go try and find one of those spots now. Bundle back up and hope this quiet spot is also in the sun. Our wonderful Naturalist, who has gotten much better on the p.a. system, has predicted more possible whale watching ahead; yesterday’s prediction yielded 2 orca sightings for me. Today I’m hoping for humpbacks. Hoping, hoping…always hoping for something. As my friend MJ wrote in a song, “Not content with what I have but wanting nothing more.”

MJF