Sailing south through Wrangell Narrows brought us to the small fishing town of Petersburg, Alaska. The town was first established in the 1890s when a Norwegian entrepreneur named Peter Bushman came to the area seeing then the potential its location. Petersburg sits near excellent fishing grounds as well as the Le Conte glacier, one whose many icebergs were once used to pack the fish on to send them down to the lower 48 states before ship trade. After establishing a cannery and saltery on Mitkof Island the area quickly became settled, earning the title “The town that fish built.” During our visit we were able to walk the fishing docks, venture across the narrows to the Kupreanof Island to walk through the muskeg and explore the town’s local shops on foot and through photography.
6/14/2025
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National Geographic Quest
Southeast Alaska
On the last full day of our voyage, we woke in Endicott Arm near the Dawes Glacier. We spent the morning enjoying Zodiac tours to the face of Dawes Glacier and watched multiple calving events. We were also able to spot several harbor seals, waterfalls, and a couple harbor porpoises on the way. After lunch we had the opportunity to participate in a polar plunge. Forty people decided to brave the frigid water for a short swim. Those of us not eager to jump into glacier water were able to watch from the bow. After the polar plunge, we warmed up on board as we started transiting towards Juneau. On the way, we stopped at a beautiful waterfall to once again admire the amazing natural beauty of Alaska. During our farewell recap, we were treated to a quick visit by a humpback whale. We ended our day with a slideshow made up of our favorite photos and memories of an amazing week on board National Geographic Quest .