After a busy day in Sitka, spent provisioning, getting settled and learning the specifics of each of boat, everyone was excited to start their adventure.  We departed Sitka with a forecast for gentle winds and calm seas and headed for Klag Bay.

Within the first half hour, as soon as we entered Middle Channel, Mason spotted the first blow of a humpback whale! We all watched as the whale swam quietly near the surface and then lifted its flukes for a shallow dive. We continued up the narrow, protected passages between Krestof, Halleck and Chicagof Islands, where we spotted a few sea lions and our first sea otters. The sea otters were resting on their backs, rising and falling with the gentle swell. They raised their heads a little higher with a curious look as we passed by. They are absolutely the most adorable sight!

As we entered Salisbury Sound, we felt the gentle swell of the Pacific Ocean but, as forecasted, minimal winds and tidal exchange made for glassy calm conditions as we continued up the outside of Khaz Peninsula. The rocky cliffs along the outside exhibited the typical color patterns created by the tidal exchanges with black bands of mussels at the base of the cliffs, golden rock weed up a step higher, a grey band of barnacles and above them, bare black cliffs topped with verdant green plants draped over the top.

As we passed through Katz Bay on our way to Klag Bay we were surrounded by small islands and a rugged coast! It was breathtakingly beautiful wild scenery with kelp patches, rafts of otters and humpback whales all around. We tightened up the flotilla and all followed closely as we slowly made our way through the maze of islands into Klag Bay.

Klag Bay was the site of a gold and silver mining village where over $13,ooo,ooo in gold was removed from 1905-1930’s. We found a protected harbor at the head of the bay, dropped anchor and settled in for a calm evening.