Tracy Arm

While enroute to Juneau our cruise breifly detoured to take in the dramatic sight of Tracy Arm. This narrow fjord stretches more than 30 miles inland from the Inland Passage. Small vessels can traverse its entire length until they reach the icy faces of the twin Sawyer Glaciers, where visitors can watch icebergs calve in loud, echoing cracks. Some of our cruise companions did this today. However, Garry and I elected no to join them as we have a similar voyage booked upon arrival in Seward next Wednesday.


While our ship was too large to trave more a few miles up Tracy Arm, we still ventured far enough to experience the majesty of this fjord. In fact, the most dramatic moment of this two-hour excursion came as our ship finally turned and prepared for its retreat. The scale of the landscape became all too apparent as you saw the lenght of our large vessel dwarfed by the sheer walls of 2,000 foot cliffs towering above us. Add to this scene a few plunging white-foam waterfalls, delicate pencil falls and brilliant turquoise blue water and you've captured the moment as well.