| Campground: | Eagle Rest RV Park, Valdez. |
| Total distance : | 4462 Miles. |
| Traveled Today: | 6 Miles. |
| Key highlights: | Boat trip to the Columbia glacier with Lu-Lu Belle Glacier Wildlife Cruises, 240 Kobuk Dr, Valdez, AK 99686 ***** |
Everyone we talked to in Alaska – told us that if we ever get to Valdez, we should not skip the Lu Lu Belle experience with Captian Fred – so we did not! When we boarded the Lu Lu Belle boat (originally a small fishing charter that was converted in the late ’70s to be a tourist charter to the Columbia Glacier) – Captain Fred announced that the trip would be at least 7 hours, but it could longer, much longer. The only commitment Captain Fred gave us was – that we would return before sunset (that happens here around midnight). The tour sailed at 10:30AM sharply – and Captain Fred – who is not a young dude- started talking. He never stopped talking…and talking.. and talking throughout the trip that finished around 0900PM. In my dreams – I may still hear Captain Fred talking about Alaska, Valdez, global warming (I think he said there is no such thing), Trump, Biden, nature, oil, glaciers, animals, food, history, geology, and everythingelse under the sun. He is probably the most knowledgeable person around – and has huge experience in navigating the icy water of the prince William sounds bay.
The tour itself was fascinating and exciting. We first ran into a bunch of sea otters – that Captain Fred decided to wake up. Then – we stopped by a couple of Salmon fishing charters – and stayed with them for almost an hour- observing the entire process of fishing and moving the fish directly to shipping and packaging bigger boats. We moved closer to the walls of the shorline canyon – and sailed into caves (you can touch the walls)- looking for nesting (beautiful) puffins, and saw a huge bunch of sea lions – trying to scare kayak travelers that came too close to them. We, unfortunately, did not see whales on this trip – but I guess this is the nature of mother nature. Captain Fred is taking his time, and is fearless in getting as close as possible to the action (animals, walls, ice). He then stays with the action for as long as he feels it is interesting. Nothing is rushed in this tour
The ship then moved into the Prince Williams Sounds inlet towards the Glacier. The inlet was flooded with icebergs and glaciers debris – a result of an accelerated melting over the last 80+ Farenhite days. Captain Fred masterfully navigated between the debris, getting us as close as he could to the face of the Glacier – this time, we could only get to 1.5 Miles – but the views and icy water were spectacular. On the way back, we were able to spot goat mountains and more otters sleeping on the iceberg before we got into a thick fog closer to Valdez. If you are around – don’t miss Captain Fred’s experience. It is something different.
We got back to Valdez just in time to see the result of today’s fishing derby. We were back before sunset!