Duke in Alaska: Two-Day Excursion to Seward, Alaska

By: Donovan Bendana, Tiwa Ibidapo, Cindy Metzger, and Kate White Bus Ride to Seward On Wednesday June 14th, we loaded the party bus to travel to the town of Seward on the Kenai Peninsula (Figure 1). Although Seward was the main attraction, the drive was fascinating. We drove on the winding Seward highway, surrounded by beautiful mountains and lakes (Figure 2). To get to the Kenai Peninsula one must travel around the Turnagain Arm, which boasts beautiful views of the water and surrounding mountains. Turnagain inlet has some of the most tide change in North America, sometimes forming a bore tide where the tide forms a wave. Along this inlet you can see petrified forests, which resulted when the land here dropped during the 1964 earthquake and the inflow of seawater killed the trees. High wind levels are another characteristic of Turnagain arm; they can be so strong they can blow off your car door! This highway, one of only twelve in the state of Alaska, is one of the most dangerous in Alaska because of these high winds and the threat of avalanche from the surrounding mountains in the winter.

Figure 1: The entire class boarded the bus to travel from Anchorage to Seward.

Figure 2: We saw beautiful mountains in the distance from Turnagain Arm. These views could be seen for the whole drive along the road to Seward.

Town of Seward The port town of Seward is located just 130 miles south of the city of Anchorage. Looking out onto the beautiful Resurrection Bay, Seward was founded in 1903 and boats a large harbor (Figure 3). The city was named after former U.S. Secretary of State William H. Seward who successfully negotiated the purchase of Alaska from Russia in 1867. With a total land area of 14 square miles and a current population of just over 2,500 residents, Seward is the 18th largest city in Alaska. In the early 1900s, Seward served as the beginning of the Iditarod Trail that was used to transport people and goods from the port into the interior of the territory. The majority of Seward’s economy is supported by fishing and tourism. According to the National Marine Fisheries Service, Seward finds itself consistently ranked among the top 20 fishing ports in the United States. Some students went to the wharf and saw the fish that local fishermen had caught that day (Figure 4). While speaking with some of the fishermen, one of the students learned of some of the fishing regulations in the area. Since Alaska is one of the most managed fisheries in the world, they have many regulations that change from year to year; for instance, charter vessel anglers (private boats) in Seward and other areas of south-central Alaska may not catch and retain halibut on Wednesdays and specific Tuesdays including the July 18, 25, and August 1.

Figure 3: This is the view of the Seward Harbor at midnight, around when sun sets in mid-June.

Figure 4: On the wharf, some students saw the fishermen’s catch of halibut and rockfish.

One shop owner along the dock told one of the students about the Halibut Tournament, which takes place from June 1-30. The day before, a fisherman caught a 250 lb Halibut which was the largest Halibut caught that week. In the Halibut Tournament, a winning fish is selected each week and its owner wins prize money. Altogether, there are about $30,000 in prizes to win in this annual event. In 2010, the small town of Seward brought in close to $70 million in fish and shellfish through its port. Seward’s booming tourism can be attributed to it being a terminal station for the Alaskan railway. The port town is kept busy with passenger and cargo railcars constantly coming into the city. Seward’s two main attractions are the Alaska Sealife Center and the Kenai Fjords National Park. In addition to its permanent attractions, Seward is also the host of the famous Mount Marathon Race every fourth of July, in which participants race up and down the mountain located just north of downtown Seward. With over twelve murals decorating the small port town, Seward is designated the “Mural Capital of Alaska” (Figure 5). It does not take long for a visitor to come across one of the town's unique and historical murals that adorn many of the building walls. In 2010, the small town of Seward brought in close to $70 million in fish and shellfish through its port. Seward’s booming tourism can be attributed to it being a terminal station for the Alaskan railway. The port town is kept busy

Figure 5: The murals in Seward often contain historical details, such as this one that contains details about the Iditarod Trail, Alaska’s legendary dog race.

Figure 6: Two sea otters were eating and swimming by the docks after dinnertime.

with passenger and cargo railcars constantly coming into the city. Seward’s two main attractions are the Alaska Sealife Center and the Kenai Fjords National Park. In addition to its permanent attractions, Seward is also the host of the famous Mount Marathon Race every Fourth of July, in which participants race up and down the mountain located just north of downtown Seward. With over twelve murals decorating the small port town, Seward is designated the “Mural Capital of Alaska”. It does not take long for a visitor to come across one of the town's unique and historical murals that adorn many of the building walls. Since we only had one night in the beautiful town of Seward, we tried to enjoy it as much as possible. For dinner, the class ate at Ray’s Waterfront restaurant. The restaurant offered a variety of Alaskan seafood accompanied with a great view of the harbor. After dinner, we explored around the docks of the harbor and were lucky enough to catch several sea otters lounging on their backs on the surface of the water (Figure 6). Every minute or so they would dive down to the bottom of the harbor bay and bring back up a clam or oyster that they would then proceed to crack open with their teeth and munch on. After spending much time mesmerized at the sea otters’ cuteness, the class then retreated back to the hotel for a good night's sleep. Alaska Sealife Center After checking in to the hotel and grabbing a quick bite to eat for lunch, our first stop of the day was to the Alaska SeaLife Center located at the very edge of downtown Seward (Figure 7). The Alaska SeaLife Center is composed of three distinct and very important programs that serve the marine ecosystem of Alaska. The center’s wildlife response program serves the purpose of responding to live and dead marine wildlife in Alaska that has been abandoned, stranded, or injured. Operating under permits from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and US Fish and Wildlife Service, the Alaska Sealife Center is the only institution in the state of Alaska given the authority to rehabilitate marine mammals. Although their busy season is from May to September, the center remains in a ready state year-round to provide

Figure 7: The class visited the Alaska SeaLife Center in downtown Seward.

relief efforts and care for animals affected by oil-spills or any other threatening events (Figure 8). In addition to the wildlife response program, the Alaska SeaLife Center also has a science and research program to the study the role of marine mammals, birds, fish, and invertebrates in the Alaskan marine ecosystem. The Sealife Center’s location and resources allows the science program to study the human impacts on marine animals and environments, determine factors affecting marine species’ reproductive success, and develop tools. The program also studies ways to better recover, restore, and protect marine animals and their environment. The final purpose that the Sealife Center serves is to provide educational resources to the residents of Alaska and people from around the world who visit the center to learn more about the marine ecosystem in Alaska and the broader importance it serves to us and the Earth.

One way the center works to educate the public is through the SEA JOURNEY program, a partnership between the Alaska SeaLife Center and the Anchorage School District. Fifth grade students participating in the program connect to the ASLC through Skype, travel to the ASLC for a field trip, and then face the task of planning a public education class action plan (Figure 9). During our visit to the Alaska Sealife Center we observed a variety of marine mammals, birds, fish, and invertebrates that were being housed for research and rehabilitation purposes. The marine

Figure 8: These sea lions are part of the marine mammal rehabilitation program at the Alaska Sealife Center.

Figure 9: This orca, created by fifth grade students for their SEA JOURNEY Class Action Project, was made using recycled cafeteria utensils and containers.

animals we saw included, but were not limited to: Stellar sea lions, ringed seals, horned puffins, tufted puffins (Figure 10), red-legged kittiwakes, salmon, rockfish (Figure 11), red king crab, and a giant pacific octopus that had just laid eggs. Our trip to the Alaska SeaLife Center was a good preparation for us to observe many of these marine animals the next day in their natural habitat along Kenai Fjords National Park.

Kenai Fjords National Park Boat Tour On Thursday June 15th, we boarded a cruise from Major Marine Tours (Figure 12). In the harbor before the trip, we saw quite a few sea otters and were able to get really close! The sea otters were playful and kept spinning around. The boat was large with two inside levels and a top outside deck. On board was a park ranger, Tom Osborn, from the Kenai Fjords National Park. He gave us a lot of information about the animals that we saw, the history of Seward, and the glaciers that we saw. Immediately after leaving the dock, we saw two humpback whales feeding in Resurrection Bay. One could tell the whales were there was by looking at the birds (gulls and black-legged kittiwake) circling around the water; it was a mother whale and her calf feeding on a school of fish (Figure 13). Right before the whales would come up out of the water, the birds would fly quickly to the spot. According to Ranger Tom, these humpbacks are part of a group that migrate from Hawaii to Alaska every summer to feed before returning in the winter. Humpback whales can be upwards of 50 feet and weigh 30 tons! The boat stopped for a few minutes to give everyone a chance to take pictures before we continued.

Figure 10: Dory, the tufted puffin, posed for pictures in between naps. Puffins are a type of alcid that feed on fish and zooplankton by diving deep into the water.

Figure 11: Pictured above is one of the many native Alaskan Rockfish in the center. There are nearly three dozen species of rockfish in Alaska.

From Resurrection Bay, we headed towards the open sea on our way to two different glaciers. Along the way, we saw mountains and landscapes that had been formed by glaciers. Up in the mountains were many cirques, which are bowl like structures from which glaciers originated. We passed many small islands, such as Fox island. The water was very calm and a blue-green color. On Cape Resurrection, we saw thousands of birds nesting in the rocks. Some examples of the birds that we saw were the horned puffins, black oystercatchers, and common murres. It was very exciting to hear all of their noises and see them flying above our heads. In one part, there was a bald eagle disturbing them and the birds were flying in and out of the rocks causing a commotion called mobbing, hoping to distract the eagle (Figures 14 and 15).

Figure 12: The group posed for a picture as we boarded the Glacier Express.

Figure 13: The two humpback whales lunge feed using their baleen, surrounded by birds looking for leftover food.

On the rocks near the birds was a haul-out for Stellar sea lions (Figure 16). The sea lions were lounging on the rocks, taking in the sunny day. We could hear the large males roaring loudly. Sadly, this species is endangered due to lack of the type of fish they normally eat and predation by orcas. However, Ranger Tom said that their numbers did seem to be increasing in recent years and he seemed hopeful that their population might be rebounding. Ranger Tom also told us about the five types of salmon in the region: pink, silver, king, sockeye, and chum. A lot of the marine life in the area eat these salmon. We then headed through the Gulf of Alaska, towards Aialik Bay. Here, we were passing through the Kenai Fjords National Park. This park was created in 1980 and has over 600,000 acres, 51% of those being ice. It contains the Harding Ice Sheet from which many glaciers, such as Bear Glacier, originate. On our way to see two glaciers, we passed Cape Aialik which can be called the “drowning mountains” because the mountains are being pulled into the sea by tectonic plates (Figure 17). The two tectonic plates are the North American and Pacific Plates; their movement is responsible for

Figure 15: The murres were mobbing to distract the eagle.

Figure 16: Stellar sea lions can often be seen lounging on a rock; their summer haul-out area.

Figure 17: The view from Cape Aialik was absolutely stunning with the snow-covered mountains in the background.

Figure 14: The bald eagle can be seen here in the distance as she tries to hunt down the surrounding, mobbing birds.

earthquakes in the area. In 1964, a 9.2 magnitude earthquake was recorded here; the second highest ever recorded in the world! Ranger Tom told us that the affected mountainous area slipped as much as 66 feet seaward!

The first glacier we saw was the Holgate Glacier (Figures 18 and 19). It is about half a mile wide and 450 feet deep at the bottom. Approaching the glacier there were many ice chunks in the water. The smallest pieces are called brash ice, the bigger pieces are growlers, and the biggest are icebergs. On top of many of the ice pieces were harbor seals (Figure 20). We tried to approach them quietly because they would slip into the water as soon as we passed. We also saw sea otters swimming around, some carrying their young on their stomachs. Sea otters are adapted to the cold water as they have very dense fur. This fur was the reason why they were hunted almost to extinction in the past. Ranger Tom passed around a sea otter pelt so that people could feel the thickness of sea otter fur.

Figure 19: A fellow sightseeing boat looking at Holgate glacier looks small in comparison to the immense glacier.

Figure 18: Kate, Karley, and Tiwa pale in comparison to the mighty glacier.

Figure 20: This is a harbor seal we saw on a piece of ice near the Holgate glacier.

The next glacier we went to was the Aialik Glacier. This one was about a mile wide. Here we saw a lot of calving, which is when big chunks of ice fall off (Figure 21). Ranger Tom had us “listen to the glacier” and we were able to hear a deep groaning sound and popping from the calving. We also saw several little waterfalls along the glacier. Both Holgate and Aialik Glaciers were stunning and marvels of nature. We were on a large boat, but the boat was a speck compared to this mass of ice. After rounding Aialik Glacier, we started our trip back and skirted along a group of islands. We saw more birds among the rocks of these islands and another haul-out of sea lions. The sea lions roared as they sat on the rocks. There was one huge male sea lion sitting on his own rock area, which was his territory (Figure 22). We saw a few of the sea lions waddle and jump into the water as the boat got closer.

Figure 21: Calving at Aialik glacier occurred as large chunks of ice fell from the glacier and into the surrounding icy water.

Figure 22: Pictured is a lone male seal lion laying on the rocks.

As we headed back, we had one final surprise. We got to see a pod of orcas. There were about five orcas swimming about. We saw their large dorsal fins, blow, and occasionally their heads come out of the water. One of the largest orcas we saw was estimated to be 13 or 14 years old by Ranger Tom, due to his large dorsal fin. The dorsal fin of orcas can be up to 6 feet tall! However, this male’s fin seemed to be about four and a half feet tall (Figure 23). We were there for quite a while before we had to leave to get back in time. After the cruise docked, we headed right to the bus and back to Anchorage. It was a long, tiring day but everyone really enjoyed seeing all the wildlife and natural beauty along the Kenai Fjords. Bus Ride to Anchorage While the party bus was fun, it was nice to have a normal (seats facing forward) bus on the way back to Anchorage. We were able to look out the window or sleep after the long day on the boat. The bus driver told us about how the company boss was trapped in a truck after getting trapped between two avalanches but made it to safety. Along the way we also passed Exit Glacier, Bird Point, Chugach National Park, Summit Lake, Moose Lakes, Kenai Lake, and Snow River. We passed Beluga Point, a place where people go to try to spot Beluga whales, but did not stop to try and find any. On the way back, we made a stop at Moose Pass at Summit Lake Lodge. Moose Pass is very small and doesn’t have a hospital or gas station, but it did have ice cream! A few of us stopped there to recharge before we continued driving (Figure 24). Alongside the road was the Alaska railway, which still has trains running in between Anchorage and Seward. Overall, the drive, both to and from Seward, was not only beautiful, but informative.

Figure 23: Ranger Tom estimated this mature orca to be 13-14 years old. The large dorsal fin is clearly noticeable here.

Figure 24: Kendall and Karley stretched their legs at Moose Pass before heading back on the bus.