Prince William Sound Blackstone Bay Glacier Cruise
Whittier, Alaska
Rating: 
Trip Type: Day Cruises
Duration: 4 hours 30 minutes
This 4.5-hour glacier cruise ventures into the calm, protected waters of Prince William Sound, where seasickness is highly unlikely. Visit three active glaciers to watch for spectacular glacier calving, where massive chunks of ice break off crash into the water. Nine alpine and cirque glaciers are visible in the nearby mountains as you cruise. You'll also see breathtaking scenery, waterfalls and wildlife such as harbor seals, sea otters and seabirds. Your cruise is narrated by a National Forest Ranger. Enhance your experience with the purchase of our Alaska salmon and prime rib buffet.
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This 4.5-hour glacier cruise ventures into the calm, protected waters of Prince William Sound, where seasickness is highly unlikely. Visit three active glaciers to watch for spectacular glacier calving, where massive chunks of ice break off crash into the water. Nine alpine and cirque glaciers are visible in the nearby mountains as you cruise. You'll also see breathtaking scenery, waterfalls and wildlife such as harbor seals, sea otters and seabirds. Your cruise is narrated by a National Forest Ranger. Enhance your experience with the purchase of our Alaska salmon and prime rib buffet.
Departing from Whittier, the Blackstone Bay Glacier Cruise travels through Passage Canal and Decision Point on its way to Blackstone Bay, a fjord located in the peaceful waters of Prince William Sound. A fjord is a deep, U-shaped valley that has been formed by glacial erosion. Prince William Sound is located in a temperate rainforest and receives a vast amount of rainfall that feeds the many overflowing waterfalls that you will see in the area.
As you cruise into Blackstone Bay, you'll soon get the first glimpse of the gigantic ice field that feeds the Blackstone, Beloit and Northland glaciers. Blackstone and Beloit are actively calving tidewater glaciers, which means that they flow from the mountains all the way down into the ocean, where they calve or break off into the water. Northland Glacier is an actively calving hanging glacier; it hangs off cliffs overlooking Blackstone Bay.
As you approach the glacier, you'll hear chunks of ice banging against the hull of the boat. These chunks of ice are called icebergs. You'll come to a stop, floating where the glaciers tower 700 feet above the 77-foot vessel. Here, the captain will turn off the engines so you can hear the ice crack and groan. Often you will see harbor seals lounging on the floating ice. You'll spend about an hour watching these glaciers so you have as much time as possible to see them actively calving. A unique experience!
As you head back towards Whittier, watch for sea otters and the numerous amounts of bald eagles that nest along the coastline. Sea otters are the smallest marine mammal in Alaska, weighing 80-100 pounds. They do not have blubber, so to stay warm they have thick fur, with up to 600,000 hair follicles per square inch. Sea otters are one of the few animals that use tools, utilizing rocks to break open the shells of crab, clams, shrimp and other seafood, which they eat 20-25 pounds of each day!
Next, you'll visit Hidden Falls, where the boat stops within feet of the mist of the falls, providing a wonderful photo opportunity. Before ending the cruise you'll visit the second-largest black-legged kittiwake rookery in Prince William Sound, where thousands of black-legged kittiwakes have built their nests on the steep sea-side cliffs. These migratory birds, part of the gull family, travel as far south as Baja California and Costa Rica every year. During the summer they mate, lay eggs, and raise their young in rookeries built into rocky cliffs.
After leaving the rookery you'll return to the Whittier harbor.
As you cruise into Blackstone Bay, you'll soon get the first glimpse of the gigantic ice field that feeds the Blackstone, Beloit and Northland glaciers. Blackstone and Beloit are actively calving tidewater glaciers, which means that they flow from the mountains all the way down into the ocean, where they calve or break off into the water. Northland Glacier is an actively calving hanging glacier; it hangs off cliffs overlooking Blackstone Bay.
As you approach the glacier, you'll hear chunks of ice banging against the hull of the boat. These chunks of ice are called icebergs. You'll come to a stop, floating where the glaciers tower 700 feet above the 77-foot vessel. Here, the captain will turn off the engines so you can hear the ice crack and groan. Often you will see harbor seals lounging on the floating ice. You'll spend about an hour watching these glaciers so you have as much time as possible to see them actively calving. A unique experience!
As you head back towards Whittier, watch for sea otters and the numerous amounts of bald eagles that nest along the coastline. Sea otters are the smallest marine mammal in Alaska, weighing 80-100 pounds. They do not have blubber, so to stay warm they have thick fur, with up to 600,000 hair follicles per square inch. Sea otters are one of the few animals that use tools, utilizing rocks to break open the shells of crab, clams, shrimp and other seafood, which they eat 20-25 pounds of each day!
Next, you'll visit Hidden Falls, where the boat stops within feet of the mist of the falls, providing a wonderful photo opportunity. Before ending the cruise you'll visit the second-largest black-legged kittiwake rookery in Prince William Sound, where thousands of black-legged kittiwakes have built their nests on the steep sea-side cliffs. These migratory birds, part of the gull family, travel as far south as Baja California and Costa Rica every year. During the summer they mate, lay eggs, and raise their young in rookeries built into rocky cliffs.
After leaving the rookery you'll return to the Whittier harbor.
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