This morning we continued our remarkable voyage through British Columbia searching for wildlife in the Klewnuggit Inlet. We carefully crept through the narrow waterway searching for even a glimpse of the elusive “spirit bear.” Sheer cliffs rose high above the ship unlocking embracing views of plunging waterfalls at every turn.
Our ship was surrounded by mist-shrouded wilderness with the sounds of varied thrush and bald eagles echoing through the morning dew. The glacially-cut inlet gave way to a beautiful light wind and golden rays of sun before breakfast.
With the old growth rainforest by our side, we were delighted to be greeted by a humpback whale late in the morning. We were able to share wonderful moments close to the bow of the ship listening to several long blows with few time in between.
After a final rise of the humpback’s fluke, we thankfully and appreciatively continued on with our journey.
Our morning was complete with a visit from a small pod of black and white colored Dall’s porpoises. These exquisite cetaceans live exclusively in the North Pacific and the Bering Sea. Their playful leaps across the water were only made more exciting when they rushed to approach our ship to ride the bow, leaving a trail of rooster-tail spray and excited smiles for us all. In the afternoon, we took advantage of the sunny day by exploring the East Inlet on kayaks and Zodiacs below snowy peaks, observing life in the area from below to above. We especially enjoyed the opportunity to see harbor seals, crabs, sea stars and a variety of temperate rainforest trees and bushes.
