Whales In Juneau: Never To Be Forgotten

Our first sighting was a disappointment. My camera refused to focus in the murkiness and without focus it wouldn’t shoot!

From there things got better in a hurry. Spotting whales is as easy as spotting the spray from their blowholes then waiting for them to submerge… or at least that’s how it worked today.

I slept well last night. I just didn’t sleep long, up around 6:30 ADT. A quick look onto the balcony brought disappointment. The fog was pea soup thick!

I knew we were in the Stephens Passage heading toward Juneau, but there were no spatial clues. I couldn’t see the shore which I assumed was close.

I tried to get some more sleep unsuccessfully. A second look outside brought more fog–not as thick.

This is unlike any other place I’ve ever been.

Stephens Passage is flanked by stubby mountains speckled with snow patches. The lower two thirds of the mountains were covered with tall spruce trees. Intermittently the trees and mountains disappeared in fog streamers.

It was chilly, foggy and gloomy. At least it wasn’t rainy. That came after breakfast! It rains in Juneau on average 222 days per year and today would be no exception!

This was our whale watching day. Helaine made the arrangements with “Harv and Marv” before we left Connecticut. We were picked up dockside and taken by van to Harv and Marv’s place a dozen miles away.

Our guide was Captain Liz (who I’d later hug). Our boat had room for nine or ten, but was limited to six. The perfect size!

It was pouring as we headed out. Other boats full of tourists were headed in the same direciton. Many were larger with open air upper decks–useless today.

Liz monitored the radio chatter. Whales don’t seem to be spooked by boats, so we headed where others were seeing them.

Our first sighting was a disappointment. My camera refused to focus in the murkiness and without focus it wouldn’t shoot! Was that it? Would I be shut out?

Things got better in a hurry. Spotting whales is as easy as spotting the spray from their blowholes then waiting for them to submerge… or at least that’s how it worked today.

We caught sight of whales at least a dozen times. Once we counted a pod of eight or nine.

After the whales we found some seals and eagles We were never as close as I’d hoped for, but close enough.

This is one of those amazing moments never to be forgotten!

The steady rain got in the way of my shots. Nothing in the distance is sharp when shot through random drops. I am still pleased with how it came out.

On the way back from the dock we stopped at Mendenhall Glacier. Yes, Juneau has its own glacier with a remarkably swift flowing waterfall right alongside.

I’m not sure I was able to properly absorb the size. That will have to wait for Wednesday when we hit Glacier Bay.

13 thoughts on “Whales In Juneau: Never To Be Forgotten”

  1. Geoff , gee how beautiful thank you so much for sharing with us. For me it is the way I travel vicariously through the eyes of others so much appreciated especially excited to see the whale pics :0)

  2. I did a similar excursion when we went 4 years ago–the weather was a little ( not much) better though! Did Mendenhall Glacier too–was a great trip–glad you are enjoying it & getting great photos!

  3. Thank you for sharing such amazing photo’s Geoff. You would never know you were having difficulty getting a good shot.

  4. We were there two weeks ago on the Sapphire Princess, so, I am really enjoying your pictures and reading about your trip! We did a lot of whale watching right from the cruise ship. There was an excellent Naturalist on board who so loved her work that it was great fun and very informative. Thanks for sharing you tip with us! Great pics!

  5. Geoff, Those pictures are exquisite! Thank you for helping me live vicariously through you! An Alaskan cruise is my dream for when I retire.

  6. Your pictures are making me wish I had the money to go back to Alaska. Love the picture of the seals on the bouy. Brings back memories of laughing at them fighting to get on there to sun themselves. (If you could call what we had that day sun)

    I remember one of the guides (It was either Juneau or Ketchican) saying they let the kids out of school one day because it was sunny and dry – so they could go play softball at the park that wasn’t under water for a change!

  7. Geoff, thank you so much for sharing your photos. Alaska is on my bucket list, although doubtful I’ll ever be able to get there. So, I very much appreciate your photos. Sort of helps to feel like I’m there and able to see this beauty of nature. Whales and dolphins are some of the wonders of the world. We are so fortunate to have these wonderful creatures on this earth.

  8. It’s funny to see East Coaster’s impressions of mountains in other parts of the country. I grew up in the shadow of 2 volcanoes (Mt. Shasta and Mt. Lassen in Northern California). And even Los Angeles has mountains much larger than in CT. I miss seeing mountains out my window in CT. We got lucky, in Juneau we got sunny, clear and 80 F! It was their hottest day of the summer so far (about 15 or so years ago). And we brought our jackets off the boat because we thought it’d never be hot.

    My favorite excursion was snorkeling! We wore full, thick wetsuits (but they were still wet so the first few moment were quite chilly). I’ve snorkeled many times in tropical places but it was so interesting in Alaska.

  9. Looks wonderful! I’ve been on whale watches here on the east coast. Always a humbling experience.

  10. I feel like I am reliving my Alaskan vacation through you. We went to Mendenhall and it was raining. Still was a joyous vacation. My husband has since gone back with my father to the interior.

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