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TRAVEL - ALASKA 2003
Note: All photographs on this page may be enlarged by clicking on them
TONGASS NATIONAL FOREST - WILDLIFE One of the key attractions in Tongass is the wildlife. Since we were largely at sea, the wildlife we saw was mostly birds. 1. Bald Eagles, the U.S. national birds, were very common, both in Juneau (including in the Mendelhall wetlands) as well as in Tongass, which apparently has the highest density of bald eagles in the United States. Along the coastal cruise, there were many sightings of lone bald eagles perched majestically on the tops of trees bordering the ocean or sometimes atop ledges. We were lucky to see a bald eagle nest as well. They were not close enough to take good photographs. 2. As we were leaving the Juneau harbor, we saw a flock of Bonaparte's Gulls. 3. Northwestern Crows were common in the harbor and city areas. 4. A large group of ~20-30 Surf Scoters, with a distinctive white nape and broad orangish bill were spotted in the water at a distance. 5. As we started coasting away from the harbor, some bald eagles were visible on the sandy shoreline, with three White-winged Scoters flying past (yellowish/orangish bill again). 6. There were occasional sightings of Herring Gulls - marked by their big size, the light ash-colored backs and upper wing with black near the tips, fairly large yellow beak with red spot and light pink legs. 7. Pigeon Guillemots were abundant near the rocky coastline, and were often seen diving into the water. The dark beak, red legs and black wedge in the white wing patch were unmistakable. 8. Arctic Terns were abundant near many of the glaciers. These terns are remarkable for their annual two-way migration between the Antarctic and the Arctic. Some juvenile Arctic terns were also visible. These terns, along with unidentified gulls, were also congregating very close to the point where ice chunks were breaking off from the glaciers and diving into the water in their vicinity. Some terns were sitting on top of the floating ice chunks - see pictures below of some such terns. Harbor
Seals were also abundant near the glaciers, basking in the sun
on top of the floating ice chunks and sometimes emerging from the cold
waters. Pictures we took of these seals are also shown below.
9. There was a sighting of a Glaucous Gull - with its distinctive lack of black wing tips, light gray back and upper wing, yellow bill and white underparts. 10. There were a few Black Scoters seen - they looked almost all black, with an orangish-yellow bill and in flight seemed to have some gray on the wings. JUNEAU, ALASKA - MENDENHALL GLACIER Juneau, Alaska is not formally a part of Tongass but is situated right next to it. It is the capital of Alaska and the only state capital in the U.S. inaccessible by road - not unexpectedly considering it is flanked by glaciers and the ocean. The city (or more accurately town) was small and cheerful, with a couple of major roads and a few minor roads. One of the sites we visited while at Juneau was the massive Mendenhall glacier which was relatively close to the main city center. The pictures below show its majesty. Note that the green on the hills (on the sides of the glacier) is thick coniferous forest.
Arctic terns were abundant near this glacier. Many were sitting on the small islands in the foreground - some with the their heads turned nearly 180 degrees and buried in their wings. Others were flying furiously and sometimes fighting over food (fish presumably). There were also large numbers of gulls - but most were too far to identify accurately. 11. There were a few Bank Swallows near a small bridge, sometimes flying very close to humans. Their brownish backs, forked tail, largely white underparts with the exception of a brown breast band, were unmistakable. 12. On the East Glacier Trail we took uphill, heading towards a waterfall, there were two Steller's Jays (with their prominent crests) making themselves felt with their somewhat harsh calls.
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