Onboard Rangers in Glacier Bay

[NoobCruise]

We'll be on the Westerdam. I've read there will be park rangers onboard while cruising Glacier Bay. Will his/her commentary be piped into various public places or do you have to be present on the same deck they're on?

 

Can you hear him/her at the Sea View pool area? Our cabin is just below the pool so I was wondering if we might be able to hear the announcements from our balcony. If not, is there a recorded version we can download and listen to on our balcony?

 

Thanks :)

[luvteaching]

When we were on the Westerdam the rangers were in the Crows Nest but their commentary was heard over the loud speakers. It wasn't heard in the room but I think it was on one of the tv channels at the same time. That was one nice part about having the balcony - the glacier views. You can see everything right from your balcony which is a huge bonus. However, don't forget to go down to the promenade deck, or out on the bow, where the stewards are handing out Dutch Pea soup!

 

Karen

[DizzyDallasDi]

On the Zuiderdam I could hear the park ranger's commentary loud and clear from my aft balcony on deck 4. Can't imagine it would be any different on the Westerdam.

[NoobCruise]

On the Zuiderdam I could hear the park ranger's commentary loud and clear from my aft balcony on deck 4. Can't imagine it would be any different on the Westerdam.

 

:) I would hope if it's on the loud speakers on deck 9, we should be able to hear it on our aft corner balcony on deck 8. If not, it's good to know they play it on the tv too :) Thanks!

[PathfinderEss]

We'll be on the Westerdam. I've read there will be park rangers onboard while cruising Glacier Bay. Will his/her commentary be piped into various public places or do you have to be present on the same deck they're on?

 

Can you hear him/her at the Sea View pool area? Our cabin is just below the pool so I was wondering if we might be able to hear the announcements from our balcony. If not, is there a recorded version we can download and listen to on our balcony?

 

Thanks :)

Yes there will be a park ranger on board as well as a naturalist, but you won't hear them in your room. Every where else but not there.

[Krazy Kruizers]

And there will be hot chocolate as well. Just check before you ask for it as sometimes we have been on ships where the hot chocolate came in a special mug which you had to pay for -- this was on the Westerdam in 2009.

Some of the rangers also bring some postcards and books with them that you can buy.

[jakkojakko]

You will hear the rangers commentary everywhere on the ship except in the Lido, MDR, specialty restaurants and your room.

In the room you can select a certain tv channel to hear them.

[Himself]

There are Two Rangers--sometimes three--that come on board after the ship enters the park. One or two are in the Crows Nest and will hand out things (some for a price) and answer questions. Another one is on the Bridge with an excellent commentary that can be heard on all outside decks. When I am in Glacier Bay, I usually head to the bow of the ship with binaculars.

[RuthC]

You will hear the rangers commentary everywhere on the ship except in the Lido, MDR, specialty restaurants and your room.

In the room you can select a certain tv channel to hear them.

But if you stay in your room to listen to the commentary, you miss the good stuff!

Unless you're too sick to get up :(, or under quarantine :(, it's much better to get outside and enjoy the experience.

[NoobCruise]

But if you stay in your room to listen to the commentary, you miss the good stuff!

Unless you're too sick to get up :(, or under quarantine :(, it's much better to get outside and enjoy the experience.

 

Maybe my question wasn't very clear since several of you are concerned about me being in my room ;) No, we won't be staying in our room. We'll be on our balcony. We booked the aft corner wrap-around balcony on the navigation deck (deck 8) so we should have fabulous views from both the back and side of the ship. My question was NOT "can we hear it in our room". We won't be in our room. If I'm on my balcony, I can look up and have a normal conversation (not shouted) with a person standing at the aft rail of the Sea View Pool (deck 9). I've read several times that people complain about the noise they can hear from the Sea View Bar/pool since it's directly above this particular cabin. So my question was "Will the rangers talk be on the loud speakers at the Sea View Bar/ pool and would we be able to hear it if we're sitting on our balcony?" :)

 

Neither of us are fans of pea soup so that's definitely NOT an attraction lol We're also coffee drinkers, not so much for hot chocolate. We plan to order room service for breakfast and lunch so we don't miss a moment of Glacier Bay :)

[3rdGenCunarder]

Maybe my question wasn't very clear since several of you are concerned about me being in my room ;) No, we won't be staying in our room. We'll be on our balcony. We booked the aft corner wrap-around balcony on the navigation deck (deck 8) so we should have fabulous views from both the back and side of the ship. My question was NOT "can we hear it in our room". We won't be in our room. If I'm on my balcony, I can look up and have a normal conversation (not shouted) with a person standing at the aft rail of the Sea View Pool (deck 9). I've read several times that people complain about the noise they can hear from the Sea View Bar/pool since it's directly above this particular cabin. So my question was "Will the rangers talk be on the loud speakers at the Sea View Bar/ pool and would we be able to hear it if we're sitting on our balcony?" :)

 

Neither of us are fans of pea soup so that's definitely NOT an attraction lol We're also coffee drinkers, not so much for hot chocolate. We plan to order room service so we don't miss a moment of Glacier Bay :)

 

I second what DizzyDallasDi said. We had an aft corner on zuiderdam, and could hear the commentary from our balcony. We were on deck 8. I had expected more noise/activity from the deck above, but I guess everyone wants to be at the front, because it was pretty quiet up there.

 

Even though you intend to be outside, do keep your TV on, so if you duck inside to warm up, you won't miss anything. We bought the Alaska cruise guide in the shop on board, and kept the map out so we could see where we were. We checked the TV map from time to time, too. (Geez, do I sound obsessive, or what?!?!)

 

Room service is a good idea. We got up early and had a good breakfast in the Pinnacle, as usual. But we had also ordered room service breakfast the night before, coffee and pastries for 10-ish. We figured that if we just called that morning, room service might be backed up. So we pre-ordered and the coffee arrived right when we wanted it. It did mean one of us had to listen for the knock on the door, but we were going into the cabin periodically to warm up, anyhow.

[NoobCruise]

I second what DizzyDallasDi said. We had an aft corner on zuiderdam, and could hear the commentary from our balcony. We were on deck 8. I had expected more noise/activity from the deck above, but I guess everyone wants to be at the front, because it was pretty quiet up there.

 

Terrific! I hope we have the same experience :)

 

Even though you intend to be outside, do keep your TV on, so if you duck inside to warm up, you won't miss anything. We bought the Alaska cruise guide in the shop on board, and kept the map out so we could see where we were. We checked the TV map from time to time, too. (Geez, do I sound obsessive, or what?!?!)

 

lol I've already bought the Alaska Cruise Guide and we've both thumbed through it already. DH LOVES maps and has already comandeered it lol I was thinking of taking some poster putty to put the map up on the wall, or maybe on the window on the balcony while we're in Glacier Bay

 

Room service is a good idea. We got up early and had a good breakfast in the Pinnacle, as usual. But we had also ordered room service breakfast the night before, coffee and pastries for 10-ish. We figured that if we just called that morning, room service might be backed up. So we pre-ordered and the coffee arrived right when we wanted it. It did mean one of us had to listen for the knock on the door, but we were going into the cabin periodically to warm up, anyhow.

 

Thanks :)

[jakkojakko]

But if you stay in your room to listen to the commentary, you miss the good stuff!

 

Don't worry Ruth, I was out on deck all day!

[tomculb]

We'll be on the W'dam in a couple of weeks. What hours are you actually sightseeing in Glacier Bay? Is it most of the day? Or just a couple of hours?

[NoobCruise]

We'll be on the W'dam in a couple of weeks. What hours are you actually sightseeing in Glacier Bay? Is it most of the day? Or just a couple of hours?

 

Our itinerary doesn't give times for Glacier Bay. It just says CO for Cruising Only. Maybe someone else can answer? We don't sail until Sept, so you'll be on her before us. I hope you come back and give a review :)

[sugarcharlie]

We'll be on the W'dam in a couple of weeks. What hours are you actually sightseeing in Glacier Bay? Is it most of the day? Or just a couple of hours?

 

I just got off the Westerdam on Saturday. You spend most of the day cruising and the captain will constantly turn the ship so that everyone will have good views of the scenery. The crows nest had a speaker with a lot of samples of fur from the different animals that live in Glacier Bay. They also had maps and showed how they changed over the last few centuries. You could also see it on channel 14 I think on your room tv.

The rangers came on a small boat and laddered up to board the ship. It was an awe inspiring sight to see the glaciers. Don't expect them to be bright white though, because they look almost blue in some spots and like "dirty snow" in others. Bring binoculars so you can catch a glimpse of the see otters, eagles and possibly some whales. We saw most of our wildlife in Sitka though.

Have a great time. I would go back next week if it weren't for the four hour flights from Chicago to Seattle.

By the way, the cruise director, Jason Venner and the entertainment were first rate. Best of any cruise I've been on, and I've been on several.

Actually, the whole experience was great with everyone from the servers to the cabin boys doing a wonderful job. I hope they can maintain their enthusiasm for the next couple of months.

[3rdGenCunarder]

When we were on Zuiderdam, Glacier Bay was all day. We had breakfast as early as possibly in Pinnacle, and I think the ship was entering the bay then. The rangers were on their boat and leaving us in the late afternoon.

[pdmlynek]

Our itinerary doesn't give times for Glacier Bay. It just says CO for Cruising Only. Maybe someone else can answer? We don't sail until Sept, so you'll be on her before us. I hope you come back and give a review :)

 

Yeah, I found it pretty hard to get any information about the exact itinerary as well. That really bothers me, because it seems that a lot of cruise line seem to approach this in a rather superficial attitude: “well, on Friday we’ll just cruise around GB, and you’ll look at pretty glaciers and mountains and whales!” without really saying anything more. That kind of a paternalistic attitude makes me feel like a touron. :mad: Yes, I am well aware that the exact times will change depending on the weather, time of year, traffic, and other reasons, but the general route should remain the same.

 

Here is what I found out so far:

 

(1) Pretty much all cruise ships sail from the entrance to GB, pass through Sitakaday Narrows, and head up to Tarr Inlet, where they mill around the end of the Inlet (roughly at 59°03’N 137°03’W). The cruise ships then just runs in circles “for a long time”, thus letting passengers on either side of the ship view both glaciers that enter the end of Tarr Inlet, namely, Margerie Glacier and Grand Pacific Glacier.

 

(2) Most people rave about Margerie but are muted with respect to Grand Pacific (perhaps it is just my perception of the travelers’ reviews, but I do not understand such a difference). Perhaps it is because Margerie moves faster (6 to 8 feet/day) than Grand Pacific (1 to 4 feet/day), thus possibly calving more frequently. Perhaps it is the height of the glaciers, ~250 ft vs ~180 ft. But I think that afternoon lighting should be better for Grand Pacific than Margerie.

 

(3) Some CC posters report that their ship stopped at another glacier. There are a couple of glaciers that this could be, but I presume that it most likely is Lamplugh Glacier.

 

(4) Under 36 CFR § 13.1178(d), John Hopkins Glacier, which is the fastest glacier (thus the glacier that calves the most) in GB, is not visitable by cruise ship from 1 May to 31 August (i.e., cruise ships can’t cross the 58°54.2’N latitude of John Hopkins inlet). Because you are sailing in September, it should theoretically be possible for your cruise ship to visit JHG. Congratulations.

 

(5) Surprisingly, judging from the posts on this board, cruise ships generally do not visit other glaciers such as Muir or Riggs. This is true even when it is not prohibited under 36 CFR 13.1180(b) (i.e., from 1 June to 15 July ships can’t enter Muir Inlet north of 59°02.7’ N). I assume that this is because a ship would likely decide on either doing glaciers on the western side of GB (ie., Margerie, Grand Pacific, Lamplugh, and possibly John Hopkins) than on the eastern side of GB (Muir, Riggs, McBride) and would not be able to do both, and give preference to western GB.

 

(6) Under 36 CFR §13.1174, cruise ships need to take special precautions during 15 May to 30 Sept in “whale waters” to protect humpback whales. Whale waters in Glacier Bay are defined as being bounded by a line between Point Carolus and Point Gustavus in the south (about 58°23’N) and a line between Lars Island and Strawberry Island in the north (about 58°31’N). This is the area at the mouth of GB, extending about 15 km north into the Bay. I assume that this means that there is a higher propensity in humpback whale sightings than in other places around Inner Passage. Indeed, CC members frequently confirm sightings of whales around the entrance to GB. It would thus make sense to ascertain when you are going to be entering and leaving GB, and schedule your whale watching time in GB accordingly.

 

(7) The best map for GB is NOAA Chart 17318, mapping the whole GB at a 1:80K scale. USGS does not seem to put out anything comparable; you’d have to rely on about a dozen 7 1/2 minute topos to get a similar picture of GB that 17318 provides.

 

 

Good luck! I'll post more once that I actually visit GB in early July.

[NoobCruise]

Wow! Thanks for the info pdmlynek! I hope once we're on the ship they'll let us know what time we'll be approaching Glacier Bay, especially if it's early morning. I don't want to sleep through the grand entrance. Although in our case, we'll be entering from the rear lol