Workshop Overview :: Granite Fjords

Join us on this incredible eight-day expedition, and photograph the scenic wonders of Alaska's Inside Passage aboard the Kirsten Anne, a luxurious 49' sailboat operated by our captain Neil Nickerson, and Alaska Sailing Charters. The Kirsten Anne offers an outstanding platform from which to photograph the incomparable tidewater glaciers and migrating humpback whales of Alaska. Adventurous photographers of all ages will love exploring Ford's Terror Wilderness, The Brothers, Pybus Bay, and LeConte Glacier Bay aboard this handsome boat.

Starts in :Juneau, Alaska

Ends in: Petersburg, Alaska

Duration: Eight days

Distance: 280 miles

Price: $3,200 to $3,800

Activities: Photography, whale watching, wildlife observation, sea kayaking, hiking.

Highlights: Paddling among the icebergs, observing bears on the beach, photography, listening to tidewater glaciers, viewing fantastic scenery, seals on icebergs, wilderness solitude, hiking through true wildeerness.

Trip dates: See Workshops for currently available trips and prices.

Reservations: Please Contact Us for more information, or to book this workshop!

Trip Itinerary

While we have a carefully planned schedule, each trip may differ slightly, depending upon wind and tides, weather conditions, wildlife viewing opportunities, and the goals of participants. Plan to arrive in Juneau, Alaska on a regularly scheduled Alaska Airlines flight, at least one day prior to our departure. We will provide you with a list of accommodations, including the Best Western Hotel.

Day 1: Our journey begins at 8:00 a.m., with an orientation and preview of our eight-day sailing adventure at Auke Bay Harbor. The crew will welcome you at the dock, familiarize you with your quarters aboard the Kirsten Anne, and show you where to stow your gear. We'll quickly settle into our cabins, take a tour of the beautiful vessel, and begin our journey.

This morning we embark into the heart of the Inside Passage. We'll have ample opportunity to hike along the beaches, kayak and explore scenic coves, and photograph whales, marine mammals, birds, and other wildlife. Traveling by sailboat, in kayaks, and on foot gives us a closer view of this elaborate ecosystem, and we hope to see brown and black bears.

We begin our adventure with a short cruise to the west side of Admiralty Island. We'll pass the picturesque Point Retreat Lighthouse, which sits on the northern point of Admiralty Island. It won't take long before we'll need our cameras and binoculars. Soon we will be seeing and hearing the blows of humpback whales, as they move together in small groups called pods. Frequently they catch herring and other small fish using a technique called bubble-net feeding. Unique to humpbacks, bubble-net feeding requires a group of whales to work cooperatively. The process begins when a school of small fish is located. The group gathers below the school of fish, and begins releasing bubbles to confuse the fish, and bunch them together. The cylindrical wall of bubbles they create acts like a net, which fish are reluctant to swim through. The entire group then suddenly surges upward through the bubble net, mouths agape – a dozen or more humpback whales all rising to the surface in unison. Each whale collects a huge mouthful of water, and then expels it, straining the fish through its baleen.

At midday, we'll head south through Stephens Passage, and watch for whales, sea lions, dall porpoises, orcas, and sea birds. Arriving in the early evening at Port Snettisham, we'll stretch our legs on shore. It's a short distance by skiff or kayak to a nearby salmon-fed river. Sweetheart Creek is the terminus of a series of cascading waterfalls, and often brown bears can be observed fishing in the pools below the falls. We'll hike through a rainforest of sitka spruce and hemlock trees, skunk cabbage and ferns. Along the way, we'll learn about a mature muskeg, and observe the tracks and sign s of the wildlife of the Tongass National Forest, including brown bears, moose, wolverine, foxes, wolves, coyotes, porcupines, muskrats, river otters and sable.

Dinner is aboard the Kirsten Anne, and our evening anchorage provides a great opportunity for a beautiful sunset.

Day 2: After an early breakfast, we depart for our short cruise into the Tracy Arm, a narrow fjord that twists and turns through towering mountains. Massive glaciers carved their way through the coastal mountains, over the course of thousands of years. Waterfalls drop thousands of feet off the granite mountains, and sapphire blue icebergs serenely float by in the emerald green water. North Sawyer Glacier provides us with an exciting opportunity to explore by kayak and skiff (if the ice pack allows) from a protected anchorage. Then we'll continue to South Sawyer Glacier, at the ice-choked end of the fjord. Extraordinarily blue and beautiful, this glacier is quite famous for its active calving, and we’ll witness gigantic chunks of ice break away from the face of the glacier.

In the early afternoon, we'll reverse directions. Our destination this evening is a small cove, nestled safely inside of Holcomb Bay. Wildlife abounds throughout the area, and it's possible to view most of the wildlife Alaska has to offer, including bears, dall sheep, mountain goats, whales and harbor seals. The evening light is beautiful, as we dodge icebergs, and wind our way back down Tracy Arm, and into the bay.

If there are icebergs on the beach, we may take the skiff to shore, and explore the productive intertidal zone. This area is a prime summer feeding ground for migratory humpback whales, and we often observe humpback whales feeding nearby. We anchor in an idyllic setting, where the sounds of breathing whales and screeching eagles drift in, across the evening calm.

Day 3: We have planned our day to make the slack tide across Wood Spit and into Endicott Arm. Kirsten Anne is underway in the early morning hours. Along the way we will be alert for drifting icebergs, as well as humpback and Orca whale sightings. We are bound for Sanford Cove, near a group of small islands called the Sumdum Islands.

Sanford Cove is the near the abandoned site of Sumdum. Little is left of the town, other than a few pilings. This is prime salmon-spawning habitat, which lures brown bears to the creeks and rivers in the area. We hike along the banks of tiny Sanford Creek, through an old growth spruce and hemlock forest, to a stunning waterfall, illuminated by the soft morning light in a remarkable grotto of ferns and mosses.

It's only a short run to Fords Terror, one of the most spectacular anchorages in Southeast Alaska. There are many places to explore by foot and by kayak. Surrounded by 5,000-foot granite faces, we marvel at the mist clinging to the precipices. Today we will make our way through the tidal rapids (at slack water, of course) into the majestic and stunning inner fjord. We explore the spectacular fjord, accessible only through a narrow passage. Rushing tidal currents and whirlpools prevent us from entering (and exiting) when the tide flows in and out. We must wait for slack water to enter this paradise.

We'll cautiously cruise through Ford's Terror, and into a T-shaped fjord. The evening light is beautiful, as we slowly wind our way into the fjord. Once again, we are in a vertical world of granite cliffs and glacier-carved cirques. Dozens of waterfalls cascade down their slopes, emptying into the turquoise waters of the fjord. Our evening anchorage is near a delightful waterfall. Black bears often visit the area, grazing on the abundance of berries in the meadows, and fishing for salmon in the stream.

Day 4: Today will be a spectacular day, as there are several dramatic places in Ford's Terror to explore, by foot and by kayak. After an early breakfast, we set out by skiff or kayak, with a bag lunch that we've packed to extend our time away from the Kirsten Anne. We’ll spend a full day exploring the fjord, and the valleys at its head. By foot and kayak, we travel beneath sheer granite cliffs and cascading waterfalls, observing brown bear tracks and the wildlife of the inner fjord.

We marvel at the mist clinging to the granite faces, spires, and precipices of the towering mountains. We explore several scenic wonders, so stunning it's difficult to believe they even exist, within the spectacular fjord. We'll take short hikes to glorious meadows of Indian paintbrush, lupine, columbine, irises, river beauties, fireweed, and more. We’ll also explore a productive intertidal zone, home to hundreds of sea stars, sea cucumbers, spiny sea urchins, sponges, periwinkles and anemones, that literally hang around below the smooth granite walls overlooking the fjord.

We may take an evening paddle along the shoreline, before we enjoy another delicious meal aboard the Kirsten Anne!

Day 5: After a relaxed breakfast, Kirsten Anne is underway once again. We have timed our departure to make the slack tide across Ford's Terror and into the Endicott Arm. As we cruise up Endicott Arm, we dodge blue and white sculpted icebergs that float by, becoming larger and more plentiful as we approach the head of the fjord. Seals and porpoises are common on the water, while above us mountain goats and bears can be seen on the fjord walls. Our relaxing boat ride takes us to the face of the Dawes Glacier.

It is twenty-seven miles up the Endicott Arm to the face of Dawes Glacier. We will linger at the face of the glacier for awhile, and witness the calving and booming of the icebergs. We'll also paddle through iceberg-laden waters, and we’ll be amused by the antics of the many seals hauled out for a rest on icebergs. We watch huge icebergs calving off the face of the Dawes. We can hear the glacier rumbling and thundering, and we safely watch as the waves surge down the shoreline of the fjord. We’ll spend time floating among the ice, and taking in the glacier against a backdrop of jagged peaks. Like the explorers here before us, the majesty and awe of this ice-carved land has etched itself into our experience.

In the early evening, we'll make our way to a seldom-visited anchorage called North Dawes Cove. We may hike up a newly-formed valley on the far side of the fjord, just recently uncovered by the receding North Dawes Glacier. As we reach the mouth of North Dawes Glacier, an icy glacial outwash river divides a meadow and scree slope with a big waterfall. Black bears commonly come down to the meadow to graze. We'll take in the magnificent vistas, as we listen for the mournful howls of wolves.

Day 6: Today our destination is The Brothers, a group of small islands near the southern coast of Admiralty Island. The morning light is beautiful, as we dodge icebergs, and wind our way down the fjord. The scenery changes dramatically, as we leave behind the world of granite cliffs of Ford’s Terror Wilderness. Rushing tidal currents and whirlpools prevent us from crossing Wood Spit until slack water.

Throughout the day, we'll watch for whales, sea lions, dall porpoises, orcas, and sea birds. We'll be sailing or cruising to Admiralty Island, known for its dense bear population. We’ll pause to view a colony of steller sea lions, crowded on the rocks of tiny Sail Island. The males vie noisily for dominance over their harems. As we continue cruising, we’ll watch for more sea lions, harbor seals, porpoise, orca, and sea birds. Along the way we continue to observe the migratory patterns of humpback whales. Arriving at The Brothers, we anchor in an another idyllic cove between two small islands, where the sounds of breathing whales, grunting steller sea lions, and screeching eagles drift in.

This remote group of small islands is a photographer's paradise. We can pick wild strawberries, learn about native plants, and revel in the glorious meadows of harebells, Indian paintbrush, lupine, columbine, irises, chocolate lilies, river beauties, fireweed, and more. We'll also explore a productive intertidal zone, home to hundreds of sea stars, sea cucumbers, spiny sea urchins, sponges, periwinkles and whelks, to name just a few of the species that literally hang around, waiting for the return of high tide. During an extra-low tide at The Brothers, various anemones gleam brilliantly. Storms come and go in The Brothers, and the light changes constantly. Eventually we have to depart, but first we'll pause for a close-up look at another colony of steller sea lions, crowded on the rocks of one of the outer islands that comprise The Brothers.

We anchor in an idyllic setting at Pybus Bay, where the sounds of breathing whales, grunting steller sea lions, and screeching eagles drift in, across the evening calm. Beautiful, remote and protected from outer waters, Pybus Bay is pristine and serene. Brown bears are abundant along the grassy beaches in spring and near salmon streams in summer. In the late 1800's, a very successful salmon cannery operation was located in Pybus Bay. Evidence of the canning operation still remains. Mother Nature has long since reclaimed the old buildings, but much of the impressive machinery still lies quietly in place, eliciting countless untold stories from the ghosts of the past.

Watching the shoreline and estuaries in the evening light, we often catch a glimpse of brown bears, fishing in the salmon-filled streams and rivers. With the largest concentration of nesting bald eagles in the world, Admiralty Island offers many chances to also see birds most commonly found in the fringe habitats between the forest and muskegs or meadows, and along the shores. Popular sightings include Canadian geese, trumpeter swans, cormorants and blue herons.

Day 7: Even by Alaska standards, sailing the Inside Passage is an extraordinary experience. Waves pummel the shore, and tidal currents swirl, stirring the sea richly into a distinct greenhouse aroma that fills the air. Green waters teem with krill, herring and salmon, attracting hungry whales, marine mammals and brown bears, all eager for their share.

Kirsten Anne is underway in the early morning hours into Frederick Sound. Throughout the day, we're alert for humpback whale and orca sightings. We are bound for the dramatic LeConte Glacier. Frederick Sound is a prime summer feeding ground for migratory humpback whales. It is a rare crossing when we do not encounter a pod of whales. We may shut down our engines and just drift, watching the whales feeding or breaching.

Our first stop is Thomas Bay, and delightful Scenery Cove. Beyond are the boulder-strewn debris fields where the Baird Glacier and Patterson Glacier merge and terminate in an alluvial outwash. Melt water moves glacial flour, pebbles, and larger rocks beyond the terminus to form outwash plains. Thomas Bay provides a unique opportunity to photograph these boulder-strewn plains, buried forests, and timber management areas.

Soon we're back aboard the Kirsten Anne, for our dramatic cruise into LeConte Glacier Bay, a twelve mile-long fjord carved out of the coastal mountain range, over the course of thousands of years. Skirting the coastline, we'll cruise to the Horn Cliffs and into the mouth of LeConte Glacier Bay. From our protected anchorage at Indian Point, we'll explore LeConte Glacier Bay for the remainder of the day. Our inflatable skiff provides access through the ice-choked bay, and can ferry us to shore, where we will learn about a muskeg, in the middle of this old-growth rainforest. Dinner will be aboard the Kirsten Anne, and our evening anchorage gives us the opportunity to watch the sunset over Frederick Sound.

Day 8: After an early breakfast, we continue our exploration of LeConte Glacier Bay. We'll cruise by skiff into the bay, observing spruce and hemlock old growth forests as we pass by. Soon the forest gives way to shear 3,000 foot rock walls, which have been ground smooth by glacial ice. We'll photograph thundering waterfalls, crystal-clear and bright blue icebergs, and curious harbor seals swimming nearby. Observing massive chunks of calving ice is an experience not to be missed.

Experienced paddlers can explore the area by kayak. Icebergs will greet us as we reach Bussy Creek, and weave our way past a parade of waterfalls and hanging glaciers high above. We'll also be sure to watch the harbor seals that keep a close eye on us as we quietly paddle by. Working our way around titanic icebergs, we’ll explore the coves, points and waterfalls which ring the bay. As we probe further into the bay, the icebergs become larger, and the pack ice thicker. We hope to catch a glimpse of thundering ice breaking off the face of the LeConte Glacier. The size and beauty of the Leconte Glacier is mesmerizing.

In the early afternoon, we'll take our final cruise, to the fishing community of Petersburg. Kirsten Anne is scheduled to arrive at Petersburg Harbor around 4 p.m. Participants should have ample time to settle into their hotels. Join us in the lobby of the Scandia House Hotel, for a group dinner at one of the many small restaurants in town.

If you need additional information about this trip, please contact us.

Price Schedule

The price schedule for this workshop depends upon the level of accommodations you prefer aboard the Kirsten Anne. The workshop fee includes includes professional guiding, field sessions, and photo instruction. Rates are per person, and are based upon double occupancy.

 

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