T&T: North to Alaska

[Richard Cook]

If visiting Glacier Bay is on your agenda, here's some pretty current 
info I put together for a book for small-boat PNW cruisers:

*_Glacier Bay_**__*

Chart: http://www.charts.noaa.gov/OnLineViewer/17318.shtml

For many cruisers a visit to Glacier Bay is a lifetime goal. Sitting 
right in front of a tidewater glacier in your own little boat, watching 
100 or 200-foot chunks of ice calving into the sea, is an experience 
never to be forgotten. And the critter-watching is excellent.

Visiting Glacier Bay is no trivial undertaking. It is a very big place, 
and with its huge snow-covered mountains has some of the most 
challenging weather in Southeast. Distances are great, anchorages are 
few, and there are several restrictions.

Only 25 boats are allowed in Glacier Bay at a time, and you need an 
entry permit. Many cruisers make reservations ahead of time, and then 
find that weather or other difficulties make their schedule unworkable. 
 From our experience, the best way to get a permit may be waiting to 
call Park HQ at Bartlett Cove until youre close by (say at Hoonah or in 
Icy Strait), and the forecast for the next few days looks reasonable. 
For best odds, call right at 6:00 AM (theyre open 6 AM - 10:30 PM) on 
either VHF 12 or (907) 697-2627. Chances are fairly good that a 
cancellation has freed up a permit, and you can take advantage of it if 
youre nearby and ready. If no permit is available, try again later or 
the next day  they dont mind you asking again.

Youll need a minimum of two days in Glacier Bay to make it to and from 
the Margerie Glacier. The Margerie, at the top of Glacier Bay some 60 
miles from the entrance, is a spectacular and active calving glacier. 
You can get fairly close to its face, some 200-300 feet high. On the way 
north, the Lamplugh and Johns Hopkins glaciers are spectacular as well. 
With a third or fourth day, you could see quite a bit more, at a less 
frantic pace, and have better odds of dealing with uncooperative weather.

To start your Glacier Bay excursion, stop in at Park HQ and attend an 
orientation on dos and donts. As of 2008 the lecture was given only at 
pre-scheduled times, so youll want to plan your first day accordingly. 
You might try entering the park very early, calling Bartlett Cove to 
check in when you cross the boundary. Tie up at the float, and catch the 
8 AM orientation (bring your National Geographic map of the Bay so you 
can see details). With good weather, you should be able to make it a 
good part of the way north, to an anchorage at North Sandy Cove, Blue 
Mouse Cove, or in front of the glacier in Reid Inlet.

Parts of the bay are considered whale waters, where boat speed is 
limited to 13 knots. Even with a fast boat, youll find that first day 
pretty full, getting through the entry process and on to an anchorage, 
unless you anchor right there in Bartlett Cove (the floats limited to a 
three-hour stay, except for dinghies). If you anchor in Bartlett Cove, 
be aware that its open to the west, and can get pretty lumpy in a west 
wind. You could also anchor without traveling too far at Fingers Bay, 
but remember to enter very carefully.

 From North Sandy, Blue Mouse, or Reid, you could head north the next 
morning, spend 2-4 hours at the Margerie Glacier, and come back south to 
anchor again. As you slowly approach the glacier through fields of bergy 
bits, keep a sharp lookout for small ones called growlers, only a foot 
or a few feet long, and often nearly clear. These weigh more than you 
might guess, and can give your boat or your prop quite a thump. The 
smaller ones make great ice for the cooler.

If you get back to Bartlett Cove for your last evening, and are out of 
permit days, the following morning you can call and obtain a transit 
permit to leave the park that day.

If the weather sounds intimidating, or youre able to get only one or 
two permit days, a nice way to see Glacier Bay is the Fairweather 
Express tour boat, operated by the park lodge.

For about $180 per person (2008), you can have a wonderful day tour, 
seeing some of the finest glaciers and lots of wildlife, with a friendly 
crew and on-board naturalist. For us, one ticket cost about the same as 
touring the bay in our own boat.

Even with only a single days permit, you could still enter Glacier Bay, 
get your orientation, and then anchor in Bartlett Cove. The next day, 
leaving your boat at anchor, row your dinghy in to the float (motor 
vessels may not be operated without a permit for that day) and catch the 
tour boat. On the third day, call for a transit permit when youre ready 
to go, and exit the park.

If Glacier Bay doesnt work out for your cruise, an excellent 
alternative is the Tracy Arm of Holkham Bay, south of Juneau on the east 
side of Stephens Passage. In fact, you might want to give it a tour even 
if youve already been to Glacier Bay. Its a particularly beautiful 
steep-sided fjord, with two tidewater glaciers, lots of icebergs, far 
less challenging conditions, and few of the complications of Glacier Bay.

Richard Cook
New Moon (Bounty 257)