Northern Lights News Spring/Summer 2005 - 2006

What A Difference A Day Cruise Makes!

The captain cut the motors and the boat drifted slowly toward a cliff wall until the bow fit neatly into a crevasse – close enough to touch rock. Hoards of noisy puffins filled the air, stood by nests along the high ledges, or plunged in a near free-fall dive before plopping in the water like fat drops of rain. Our cruise up the inside passage had been great, with expansive mountain and glacier views – but we had never been close enough to shore to experience the likes of this.

Two popular day cruise options out of Anchorage offer this kind of adventure – Prince William Sound and Kenai Fjords National Park. Here’s the insider information:

Prince William Sound

Accessed from Whittier, Alaska, 60-miles (96.6 km) south of Anchorage, Prince William Sound is the more protected area with generally calmer seas. In fact, one tour company operating a catamaran in the Sound guarantees no seasickness upon a money-back return. The appeal of this cruise is mainly glaciers. Wildlife is often encountered such as sea otters, whales, sea birds and seals basking on floating icebergs, but it’s the incredible number of alpine, cirque, piedmont and active tidewater glaciers that are the most impressive aspect of this tour.

Kenai Fjords National Park

Located out of Seward, Alaska, 127-miles (204 km) south of Anchorage, Kenai Fjords National Park is weighted by wildlife. Glaciers are prevalent too, but it’s astounding how many animals can be encountered on one cruise, including orca, gray and humpback whales, Stellar sea lions, sea otters, Dall porpoises surfing the bow wave, or puffins and a multitude of other sea birds. Even land mammals are often spotted along the shore such as brown and black bears, or Dall sheep high on the mountain ridges.

So should it be a Prince William Sound or Kenai Fjords National Park Cruise - time permitting, why not make it both?

For transportation questions, see “Getting Around” starting on page 11.

Explore www.Anchorage.net/daycruises for more information on day cruises.