Mid morning, we began going out on deck to peer off into the distance as we approached Hubbard Glacier. At first we saw dark, jagged mountains, and eventually a lighter color in between. As we approached, the lighter color took on a bluer tone.
This glacier is 76 miles long, and the face open to the sea is six miles across. We spent some time at the entrance as another cruise ship sailed away, and finally got close to the glacier at noon for our two hour timeslot. We got amazingly close, with many people nervously making “Titanic” jokes as we hit icebergs.
I’ve seen photos of Hubbard, but really, pictures do not do it justice. Truly one of the most extraordinary things I’ve experienced. This is one of the reasons people go to Alaska.
As pieces of the face crack and slide into the ocean, you hear a noise like thunder, and then see a huge crash of ice and spray of foam as it falls. (Calving is the term, for some reason) Pieces were falling constantly, and people ran all over the deck for photos and to see each new calving.
As you can see, it was very cold, probably 30 degrees at the point closest to the glacier.
We warmed up with soup from the buffet, and read and napped for the afternoon. We got persuaded to go to tonight’s show, a magician who was pretty good. The boys enjoyed this, and also the elaborate dinner. The food in the dining room continues to be hit or miss, and I am still sad to not be able get a piece of fish that hasn’t been cooked to perfectly dry while sailing through some of the best salmon waters in the world.
Comments (2)
It looks gorgeous. I bet you are glad you packed all the warm clothes.
Posted by Marta | August 30, 2008 11:48 AM
Posted on August 30, 2008 11:48
Amy, this looks gorgeous, I can't believe how close you were able to get to these glaciers and to see one calving would be awesome.
Posted by sandrac | September 1, 2008 6:16 PM
Posted on September 1, 2008 18:16