…Alaska’s Prince William Sound that is.
An evening fog rolls in to Fox Farm Bay, Elrington Island, Prince William Sound, Alaska (Amanda Mortimer)
A lone fishing boat plies the waters in the Gulf of Alaska just beyond Resurrection Bay. (Amanda Mortimer)
This past May, my husband and I had the good fortune to spend a week aboard our friends’ boat, Fancy Lady II, exploring and shrimping in Prince William Sound. We sailed from Seward, crossed the edge of the Gulf of Alaska and motored our way into western Prince William Sound. While I am under strict rules not to disclose the exact location that we dropped our shrimp pots, I can say that we enjoyed exploring the numerous bays and coves while waiting to pull the shrimp laden pots back onto the boat.
Stellar Sea Lions soak up the sun on one of the rocky islands of Procession Rocks. Prince William Sound, Alaska (Amanda Mortimer)
I saw sea lions sunning themselves on rocky outcroppings at the edge of the Gulf of Alaska. I got to watch humpback whales lunge-feeding near the shore of Elrington Island. I saw orcas spy-hopping in Resurrection Bay. I kayaked with seals in the small bay that we anchored in most nights. I spotted sea otters floating on the waves in Greystone Bay.
Two playful sea otters look curiously at the boat as we explore Greystone Bay, Prince William Sound, Alaska (Amanda Mortimer)
I sailed past nesting kittiwakes clinging precariously to the rocky cliffs of their rookery. And there were eagles everywhere…Eagles flying, eagles sitting in trees, eagles diving for fish.
A Bald Eagle soars among the trees. (Amanda Mortimer)
Even without the wildlife, the scenery was stunning. Deep fjords full of the bluest glacial water…some with “rivers” of ice burgs floating along with the current. Towering waterfalls, fed by last winter’s snow, tumbling down steep wooded cliffs. Red sunlight filtered through the smoke from the Funny River fire that was burning on the opposite side of the Kenai Peninsula. The bright greens of new spring leaves. The grey of rocky granite walls.
A shear wall of granite dominates the landscape of Greystone Bay, Prince William Sound, Alaska (Amanda Mortimer)