Welcome to the rainforest. Even though we had blue skies and calm conditions, there is still something magical about venturing into the temperate rainforest of Southeast Alaska. Catalina and I embarked on an all-day kayak and bushwhack adventure. Susie and Fisher embarked on a 'bushwhack light' adventure. And Heidi and Dela joined for a low-tide, shoreline tidepool exploration.
These islands are located just off the mainland at the Northeastern corner of Fredrick Sound. I've had some pretty incredible encounters with humpback whales here in the past, but you never know what animals you might encounter. We saw some far off whales from the boat, but were treated with closer encounters with eagles, harbor seals, stellar sea lions, belted kingfishers, and even a couple of black bears.
Even without the wildlife, the adventure would have been worth it. The water conditions were flat and calm, perfect for kayaking. We could see right down below the water. Plus it was low tide in the morning, so all of the sea stars, barnacles, and limpets were on full display. A bald eagle was eating something on the rocky shoreline, most likely the remains of a fish that it had been working on for awhile.
We stopped on the back of Robert Island for a little exploration and a picnic lunch. Catalina and her new friend Dylan figured out how to turn the beached kayak into a teeter totter. This game somehow morphed into riding a bucking bronco... probably because I was in the back trying to shake them off. We also found an eagle skeleton just inside the forest, with a banana slug close by.
Our next stop was a bushwhack on the mainland, after kayaking up a salmon stream until it became too shallow. We walked through a meadow with grass that was taller than Catalina. Entering the forest made moving easier for the little kids, and we quickly stumbled on an old log cabin with a sign above it reading "Hooligan Hollow."
We had a few more stream crossings during our bushwhack, and ended up back at our kayaks for a relaxing paddle back. Just after getting into the kayaks, Fisher and Susie popped out of the woods on the opposite side of the river. It was such a fun experience to be out with Catalina, and have an impromptu meeting with my son and mother in law in the wilds of Alaska. We said 'hi', and 'bye', as they continued their bushwhack.
Ironically enough, it was shortly after this meeting, and right down the coast that I spotted the bears. And they were moving in the same direction as Fisher and Susie's bushwhacking group! But all was good, and the bears even made an appearance for another group later in the afternoon.
It was a beautiful day for exploring Alaska with the family.
A ode to Abbey Road as we cross a quintessential Alaskan salmon stream
Check out the spot here on pinmapple.com
[//]:# (!pinmapple 57.29443 lat -133.50727 long RobertAndCrowe d3scr)
-Dai Mar