Glacier Bay Foggy Did not see Glaciers

[annmasae]

thanks to everyone for their information. Special thanks for those posting pictures / video of glacier bay.

my friend really enjoyed the views.

[momoftwinteens]

We are just off the Norwegian Pearl to Alaska. We had pouring rain in Juneau that while at the Mendenhall Glacier but it didn't obscure the view that much. As for Glacier Bay, it was foggy in the morning but cleared up in the afternoon. The views and the glaciers were beautiful.

 

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[Budget Queen]

Ok- I'm going to be my blunt self. :) Most people do NOT spend much time out. Frankly- it's just about impossible, they did not see "any" glaciers???? I'm going to speculate that there was mist, and the didn't "count" what they may have seen? In Glacier Bay- FACT- there a 4 glaciers to see, with sometimes 5, I can't tell you how infrequent it is for people to be looking past the Margerie seeing them all? With you stating glacier are a priority- this I strongly suggest you stack the decks and book several tours? Like Prince William Sound, Kenai Fjords, flightseeing, boat/canoe/kayak glacier tours on the inside passage.

 

Your claim of May/June isn't any guarantee either. I had a fogged out glacier day, this year in May. Great viewing of the same glacier the next week.

 

I'm just back today- another misty day at Hubbard- which was spectacular, in my opinion, very dramatic scenery and colors. I've had washed out intensity in full sunlight, which is not my preerence.

 

Beauty of Alaska is for that instant you are there, never to be repeated. ONLY way with "priorities", is to stack the decks and get there at every opportunity.

[hubofhockey]

For our first time, we have Hubbard from the ship, 5 glacier sea plane flight, and kayak paddle to Mendenhall. This is June 8-15 and we could see a lot or nothing. I hope we're covered, but it could rain like crazy every day and we may not even get in the sea plane or even out on the kayak. Hoping for the best, but not expecting the best, just something.

[cruisin'teach]

A friend of mine returned from an Alaska Cruise and said that Glacier Bay was foggy so she never saw any glaciers.

She left on Aug 9 from Vancouver on HAL Volendam.

I am so shocked that this can happen. Is this a common occurrence?

The whole point of going on an Alaskan cruise is to see the Glaciers.

It is strange that there is not much mention of this problem on the forums.

I plan to go to Alaska in the future and now will try to go May/June since the Glacier Bay website said these are the dryest months.

Thanks in advance for any comments on this issue.

Be sure to watch weather in Seattle area as well - we have had high pressure over the Pacific NW (only 2 days of sprinkles since mid June) usually that means cooler wetter weather will head to southeastern Alaska

[AryMay]

Now, the trade-off of going in May is that there is much less wildlife. We saw spouts from a few whales and some seabirds, but that was all. That was OK with me because I was more interested in seeing the scenery (we did a bunch of hiking in the ports) than seeing wildlife. Having great weather for our scenic hikes was wonderful.

I felt like we hit the jackpot on wildlife on our Alaska cruise this past May...bears, otters, seals, sea lions, puffins, and many, many eagles. But...the best of all...whales breaching and bubble net feeding right next to the ship! I think it was a combination of luck and lots of time spent looking but I don't think it would be fair to say that there is less wildlife to be viewed in May. Here are some photos from our cruise...

 

 

 

 

 

And lastly...if you want a different view of glaciers, consider flying OVER Glacier Bay. We booked a flight with Mountain Flying Service out of Skagway and were in awe of the sheer magnitude of the glaciers...so much more impressive than just viewing them from the water.

 

[Budget Queen]

I felt like we hit the jackpot on wildlife on our Alaska cruise this past May...bears, otters, seals, sea lions, puffins, and many, many eagles. But...the best of all...whales breaching and bubble net feeding right next to the ship! I think it was a combination of luck and lots of time spent looking but I don't think it would be fair to say that there is less wildlife to be viewed in May. Here are some photos from our cruise...

 

 

 

 

 

And lastly...if you want a different view of glaciers, consider flying OVER Glacier Bay. We booked a flight with Mountain Flying Service out of Skagway and were in awe of the sheer magnitude of the glaciers...so much more impressive than just viewing them from the water.

 

 

Aren't you making reference to a 14 day cruise? Hardly any way to compare that to a 7 day cruise. I spent over 5 weeks on the same trip and time had a lot to do with what was seen. Add that the cruise- also included 5 of the 6 Alaska cruise ports and 3 glacier scenic areas. (I had spectacular views of Hubbard the following week.)

[AryMay]

Aren't you making reference to a 14 day cruise? Hardly any way to compare that to a 7 day cruise. I spent over 5 weeks on the same trip and time had a lot to do with what was seen. Add that the cruise- also included 5 of the 6 Alaska cruise ports and 3 glacier scenic areas. (I had spectacular views of Hubbard the following week.)

 

Yes...these photos were from a 14 day cruise, but I still don't think making a statement saying that there is less wildlife in May is accurate. I could post similar photos from a 7 day cruise we took at the end of May in 2014.

[JULIE A A]

I felt like we hit the jackpot on wildlife on our Alaska cruise this past May...bears, otters, seals, sea lions, puffins, and many, many eagles. But...the best of all...whales breaching and bubble net feeding right next to the ship! I think it was a combination of luck and lots of time spent looking but I don't think it would be fair to say that there is less wildlife to be viewed in May. Here are some photos from our cruise...

 

 

 

 

 

And lastly...if you want a different view of glaciers, consider flying OVER Glacier Bay. We booked a flight with Mountain Flying Service out of Skagway and were in awe of the sheer magnitude of the glaciers...so much more impressive than just viewing them from the water.

 

 

 

AryMay - your photos are spectacular and I didn't realise there was a flight option over Glacier Bay! Thank you so much for that information as I am now considering trading another excursions for this opportunity :) Was there a minimum to book or set flight times?

[AryMay]

AryMay - your photos are spectacular and I didn't realise there was a flight option over Glacier Bay! Thank you so much for that information as I am now considering trading another excursions for this opportunity :) Was there a minimum to book or set flight times?

 

Mountain Flying Service was great to work with. We had already planned a full day in Skagway with a rental car driving up the Yukon Highway and they were willing to schedule our flight in the evening so we didn't have to rush back. (We were in port until 9 pm.)

 

When we booked, it was just the four of us but when we arrived at the airport there were two others who had booked separately and joined us for the flight. Each person had a window seat so even with 6 the views were great. I got the impression that they would have done the flight even with just the four of us.

 

We had hoped to do the longer flight over the West Arm of Glacier Bay National Park (where the ship sails), but Paul (the pilot) was unable to get over the mountain pass due to low clouds and snow. The one hour flight over the East Arm that we did still took us over several different glaciers.

 

You can get a better idea of what we saw by looking at the photos on my blog: My Souvenir Memories. There is also a link on the blog post to a video of our flight that I put on YouTube. (This trip was my first attempt at video so don't be too critical. ;)) You can see from the video that the airport runway was literally right next to where our ship docked so it was convenient.

Edited August 30, 2017 by AryMay

[JULIE A A]

Mountain Flying Service was great to work with. We had already planned a full day in Skagway with a rental car driving up the Yukon Highway and they were willing to schedule our flight in the evening so we didn't have to rush back. (We were in port until 9 pm.)

 

When we booked, it was just the four of us but when we arrived at the airport there were two others who had booked separately and joined us for the flight. Each person had a window seat so even with 6 the views were great. I got the impression that they would have done the flight even with just the four of us.

 

We had hoped to do the longer flight over the West Arm of Glacier Bay National Park (where the ship sails), but Paul (the pilot) was unable to get over the mountain pass due to low clouds and snow. The one hour flight over the East Arm that we did still took us over several different glaciers.

 

You can get a better idea of what we saw by looking at the photos on my blog: My Souvenir Memories. There is also a link on the blog post to a video of our flight that I put on YouTube. (This trip was my first attempt at video so don't be too critical. ;)) You can see from the video that the airport runway was literally right next to where our ship docked so it was convenient.

 

Awesome :) Right or left side of the plane better? I like to sit a bit further forward (but not co-pilots seat) to avoid the reflections. Recommendations on camera gear - I shoot canon and guessing wide on one body and zoom on the other? Any other advice??? Thank you for your suggestions so far :) So excited - we leave Australia on Friday!

[AryMay]

Awesome :) Right or left side of the plane better? I like to sit a bit further forward (but not co-pilots seat) to avoid the reflections. Recommendations on camera gear - I shoot canon and guessing wide on one body and zoom on the other? Any other advice??? Thank you for your suggestions so far :) So excited - we leave Australia on Friday!

 

I am probably not the best person to be asking for photography advice! I use a Canon SX-50...a point & shoot with a long zoom. My strategy is to go for quantity and HOPE for quality on a few photos.

 

When we did the flight, I used my Canon on one side and my husband was using my underwater camera through the opposite side window. I can see the difference in quality between the two cameras...especially on the video. We were in the third row from the front and at times I was frustrated because I was trying to get photos out of the window in the row ahead but the women sitting there were always in the way.

 

Not sure of your size, but my friend (who was the smallest in our group) sat alone in the very back seat and had windows on both sides. Seems she got better photos because of this. If you decide to do this flight, I would let them know that photography is important and see if they can work with you on the best seating arrangement.

[Budget Queen]

Yes...these photos were from a 14 day cruise, but I still don't think making a statement saying that there is less wildlife in May is accurate. I could post similar photos from a 7 day cruise we took at the end of May in 2014.

 

Yes, absolutely great wildlife viewing opportunities the entire cruise ship season. Sometimes people make claims based on their single experiences. Wildlife viewing does take a lot of effort, with - time being essential, tours, knowledgeable about trends and areas. - and pure luck. :)

 

I've never seen such a fantastic itinerary as that 14 day NCL sailing. I don't see any repeat in the future either. Glad I booked it, especially when it price dumped. :)