Alaskan Cruise, Part Fief

Hello again, fellow Alaskan Cruisers!   In this installment, we take a trip through Glacier Bay National Park, one of the few national parks that people tour via a cruise ship.
The Glacier Bay Basin was declared a national park in 1980, but has been a destination for scientists and sightseers long before then.   The main attraction is, of course, the glaciers.  The glaciers present in the park have existed through at least the last four ice ages, concluding with the Little Ice Age 4000 years ago.   The glaciers in the park are remnants of that ice age, and several of them continue to grow and move through the valleys.
The area around the glaciers is nature in its rawest state.   The glaciers are still carving out the environment.   This is how the world looked right after the ice age...  Rocky, with moss and small plants slowly developing the soil and landscape.   In several thousand years, this area will be a forest, but now, it's still being born.   I found this look into the past both interesting and wet.   Yes, it was raining the morning we toured.   Only a small percentage of the passengers on our ship ventured out onto the rain-soaked deck to view this spectacle.   I was one of them, and got the following pictures:

Entering the park, you see small icebergs floating by.   These chunks of ice have fallen off of the glaciers in the park.  It looked a little like TITANIC, except that there were no star-crossed lovers to spoil the ambiance.

This land had glaciers on it relatively recently.   Vegetation is starting to grow.   Eventually this will be a full-grown forest.

Our first glacier comes into view.  Fortunately the fog would lift for a while so we could get pictures.   Very accommodating.

I think this was the Margerie Glacier.   I should have taken better notes.   If there had been a test, I would've failed Glacierology.

We got relatively close to this glacier.  There was a bear swimming in the water that became a cause celebre.   Yeah, like I traveled this far to see a swimming bear.

At one point a large chunk fell off, splashing into the ocean.   Naturally, at that very moment, I was facing the other way, as someone was taking my picture.  Figures.

At this point the boat is turning around.  It has amazing parallel parking abilities.  I hope the captain stuck out his hand.

I should mention that there was NO LINE for the buffet at this time.   Joe Cruise Tip:   To avoid lines, try to eat breakfast during the most dramatic part of the cruise.

There was one guy in the hot tub that came out to see the glacier.   We were all bundled up in thick jackets and he was wearing a towel.  What a show off.

I think this is the John Hopkins Glacier.   Well, most of you won't know the difference, so let's just say it is.  If John Hopkins wants to complain, I'm open to comments.

There are so many glaciers it's hard to keep them straight.  Many of them look the same, and they are all blue.  I'm sure they have a hard time remembering who is who...

More snow-capped peaks.  The glacier is off to the left.

It seems like this story is moving somewhat glacier-like.   In our next exciting chapter, we will travel to Ketchikan, see a non-swimming bear, and come face-to-face with an owl...  Stay tuned!