Humpback Whale Frenzy Highlights Full Port Day in Juneau
Day 24, 2024 Ultimate Alaska
Tuesday, July 2, 2024; Juneau, Alaska.
Sometimes I just have to put the camera down and soak in the view.
Whale spouts erupted all around us – I didn’t know where to focus my zoom lens. Perhaps a dozen humpback whales were blowing, slapping tails and pectoral fins, spyhopping and even breaching. In one magical moment, a pair of the enormous whales breached together – a sight our experienced boat captain said she had never before seen.
At first, I kept clicking the shutter, hoping my camera’s shutter was fast enough and my aim good enough to capture the scene as the boat bobbed. Any good shots were only because the humpbacks were giving me so many opportunities. And somehow, I seemed to have engaged a filter that gave everything a blue cast.
Next to me in bow of the boat was Lorrie Johnson, with a proper DSLR camera and telescopic lens and a steadier stance than mine. She graciously shared with the rest of us her excellent photo series of a breach and gave permission for me to include one.
They say the best camera is the one you have with you, and in today’s world everyone seems to have a smartphone with an even smarter camera. It’s easy to fall into the belief that if you don’t have a photo (and post it on social media) it didn’t happen. This morning I tried to remind myself to simply watch and soak in the memories.
We were the first of five cruise ships to arrive in Juneau early today, and we would be the last to leave at 11 p.m. The clouds were heavy and as forecast, rain fell for an hour or so in the early afternoon.
My small-group photography tour started with the whale-watching boat trip in the morning, where we apparently hit the motherlode of humpback whale activity. Our guide said the best photos are taken from as close to water level as possible. The captain of our small boat had just come to Alaska this spring from Maui, along with the humpbacks who winter there. She recognized many of them from her years in Hawaii.
By late morning we returned to the marina and headed by bus to the Mendenhall Glacier area. The rain came as we hiked about a mile through the rain forest, but everyone was prepared with all-weather hooded coats. Along the path were stone markings showing the forward edge of the glacier during the past century.
In the ensuing decades, its retreat has left Mendenhall Lake, and by next year the glacier will retreat away from the lake’s edge. Our guide said this is the last summer they expect to see ice from the glacier in the lake.
Meanwhile, Eloise and Elaine explored the town on their own. They were booked for an evening whale-watching tour (the sun is up till after 10 p.m.), but later in the day heavy fog in the marina canceled the tour.
Carrying on with what has become a wonderful habit this trip of meeting up in ports with friends, I had lunch with Spencer, a former Holland America crew member I’ve sailed with frequently. He started as a chef in Holland America’s partnership with America’s Test Kitchen, where I met him on the Grand Asia cruises in 2017 and 2018. When that partnership ended, he joined the entertainment staff on the 2020 world cruise and then on the 2023 world cruise as the sports director. Now he spends the season sailing in Alaska with a small expedition ship company and happened to have a day off in Juneau today.
We had a great time catching up on our lives while enjoying halibut fish and chips. My sisters dropped in for a group photo.
Holland America continues to feature Alaskan seafood in the Main Dining Room and the Lido Buffet, where tonight was a salmon bake-themed dinner. We’ve frequently enjoyed seafood bars where I have eaten more than my share of steamed mussels.
Tomorrow we are invited to what I believe is the second of three mariner’s luncheons, which will follow a ceremony in which the captain will present medallions to passengers who have achieved 500 and 700 nights on Holland America ships.
Wonderful photos and descriptions!! What an exciting humpback event!!
Yes, you hit the “whale jackpot”… and thanks for telling us where the critters have disappeared to. They are very rare in Sitka this season.
It’s spooky. I grew up with the concept that glaciers don’t move. When we first saw the Mendenhall there was about half as much lake as there is today and (then) totally inconceivable that there wouldn’t be ice in the lake. It’s a sad thought, but I totally believe that’s what you were told.
Great post! I got excited as I read your description of the whale breeching. I’ve not been drawn to an Alaska cruising, but you’re drawing me in.
When there used to be regular ferry service between Juneau and Sitka we would take the kids down to Mendenhall lake. fish out glacial ice for the cooler before we got on the ferry. There hasn’t been much ice along the shore for years and now gone next year!. In Iceland there is a museum with a display on retreating glaciers and Mendenhall is featured.. I’m gonna have to dig through my old pictures and take some new ones for my own comparison.
Well done Jo with your whale watching – sorry that Elaine and Eloise weren’t so fortunate. Excellent work catching up with Spencer – what a storied career he has already had.
Jo, you were definitely in the right place at the right time for whale watching. I understand why you put your camera down (after getting some great shots) to be in the present moment and fully experience it. I didn’t get the great shots you did but also put my camera (iPhone) away to feel the majesty of those incredible sea mammals. So sorry we couldn’t connect in person!