Tony and Josephine on MOJO and Chris and Jane from Deception started the day with an early morning dingy excursion tour to the San Juan Islands outside Cannery Cove to catch a hopeful glance of sea otters in the kelp beds. We saw quite a few sea otters pop up here and there, but none interested in getting too close.

It was a worthwhile adventure being out on the glassy waters in the early morning quiet with the mountains reflecting in the green waters. We saw nine eagles: adults with their classic white head and tail and juveniles with their mottled brown plumage, resting on a rocky outcropping and taking turns feeding on something on the beach.

After anchoring and rafting at Security Bay, Milt, Meredith and Jane took a leisurely kayak around a nearby island and chanced to see a few sea otters, ravens, eagles and a deep red Lion’s Mane jellyfish casually pulsating through the clear shallow water. Connie and Maddi of La Vida decided to kayak to a nearby shore to collect salmon berries.

Gary and Anna in mini-Koa dingy alerted the fleet to a black bear sighting along the shore. Both Thea and Deception ventured out for the show. While we were out, we noticed two more black bears in slightly different places calmly grazing on the sedge grass. The bears were aware of our presence but because we remained well offshore, they continued grazing with an occasional indifferent look in our direction.

Frank, Barbara, Nick and Janet on Arctic Star were all relaxing on Arctic Star enjoying a glass of wine with their front row seats at the bear show without ever needing to leave their boat. Being from Florida, they expressed feeling very blessed to be enjoying yet another unexpected sunny calm day in Alaska.

As the sun lowered and the sky took on a pink hue, we all settled in for yet another quiet, calm evening.

P.S. Is Alaska on your bucket list? We can take you there! Email us to reserve your spot on our 2023 Mother Goose AK Flotilla. charters@nwexplorations.com