Naturalist Nat

Skagway today, June 6th was gorgeous! The sun tried its best to come out and though windy, it did not rain at all. I just checked out nearby Arctic Terns and for my efforts, was dive bombed not once…not twice, but three times! 😵‍💫 The first one was because I did not see the nest (5th photo) that is right on the side of the road where cars are parked. 🙄 The problem is Arctic Terns are supposed to read the sign where they are supposed to nest behind the cordoned off area closer to the airport. Instead, they lay their eggs w***y nilly anywhere they choose to! Fine! So I went further away only to be dive bombed by another tern who was resting inside a fenced lot. I guess they’re being very territorial even if I don’t see a nest. The third, I’m guessing, just didn’t like the way I pointed my camera lens at it while it flew overhead. The last 2 photos are dive bombers 2 and 3. 😖

SERENDIPITY . SYNCHRONICITY . Fate? Coincidence? Meant to be? 😁 During our whale watching tour from the Port of Klawock, AK, we encountered what I thought was 5 or 6 humpback whales. However, when I looked up 3 of my fluke shots, they were from the very same whale! They were all taken in different locations but all within Klawock Inlet. To my surprise, this whale, HI18-0103 (unadopted/nameless) has never been reported except in Hawaii for 19 years! Why now? 🤷🏻‍♀️ I am just happy we now know where he/she feasts in Alaska. Did it follow our boat? At one time it even spyhopped to check us out. 😁💕🥰

Azamara is incredible. What a fabulous Azamazing Ketchikan night. When all the other ships have departed, and only the Pursuit remained, we all had our very own exclusive Alaskan Lumberjack Show. There were drinks, chowder tasters and salmon spreads to try before the show. Our team- the Canadian Dawson Creek team won! Yay 😁. So much fun and laughter. What an incredible Alaskan experience! Here’s a taste of the fun filled and action packed evening. 😁

What a spectacle of Bald Eagles! I counted about 33 flying just above us and around us. Thanks to for her video- watch the eagles go for the herring! I got to hold a Snow Crab (ok I would rather eat one 😁) photo towards tBering sea Crab Fishermen's Tours usual, is excellent and I never tire of going on their Ketchikan tour especially May to June for Annette Island eagles. 😍

Thank you for joining me during my wildlife and destinations presentation yesterday; And congratulations to all Azamara swag winners! Your interest and participation are truly appreciated. Join me again on June 5th, Sitka afternoon after sail away for stories of humpback whales. Our next destinations topic is on Skagway, Haines and Icy Strait.

What an AZamazing White NIght onboard the Pursuit! How many can say they’ve really sailed BC’s INISIDE PASSAGE?! Most ships leaving Vancouver will sail the Johnstone Strait inside route then out to Queen Charlotte Sound, Hecate Strait then cross the Dixon Entrance into Alaska. Our captain gave us a very rare treat. Look at the map on the last photo- the black is the usual ship route. Azamara Pursuit sailed the red one, we went inside the very narrow passages of Princess Royal Channel (1 humpback whale just before entering the south end and 1 more inside the channel); and into Grenville Channel. We passed part of Whale Channel where we encountered 2 Fin whales and had Dall’s porpoises trailing our wake. Beautiful sunset and as I was about to leave, 1 humpback whale fluked close to us as we entered Grenville, making for an excellent end to a memorable evening! 😍

If you plan to walk around Ketchikan, Sitka and Klawock, here are some places you may want to explore.

Hope you all had a restful weekend! I’m getting ready to join Azamara tomorrow so lots of packing, cleaning, and memorizing presentations. 🙂 Check out this handsome big guy; his battle scars makes him irresistible to zee ladies…😁

Back home in Vancouver for a few days, I went to check out our local black bear cubs. Though I didn’t see any, I came across this adorable 🥰 yearling. It must have just been separated from mom 🥹 as it was feeding by the roadside. Just look at that beautiful coat, though it must have felt warm on this 25’c / 77’f day! I used a telephoto lens so I was quite a distance away.