I'm Not Proud

Cascade, Barry and Coxe Glaciers in the Prince William Sound, Alaska. It is an awesome experience to be up close and personal with those glaciers. The silence broken by the crackle and roar as they calve off huge chunks of ice and your kayak rolls in the resulting wave that blazes through the bay! Wow.

So I dropped a class. I think this is the first time ever. Me, the wonder student. Mr. Smarty pants himself. I stared at the syllabus several times over and, while I really wanted to take that class, I decided I just didn't have the time to do it. Defeat? ...or maybe just some respect for my personal sanity. What's it competing with? The day job, the "night job", the other 9 credits of law courses, the orchid habit, the photo habit and some small modicum of social life. Did I do the right thing? Yeah, I guess so... Happy Thursday! I have to go write out some bills (bleah).

Dall's Porpoise

Some Dall's Porpoise that were keeping us company in Prince William Sound, Alaska. They stayed for the entire time while we fished for halibut. We didn't catch anything other than a few beers.

Kittywake Colony

A colony of kittywakes in Prince William Sound, Alaska. They glue their little nests up against the steep cliff walls so bears, foxes and other hungry critters don't get the eggs/chicks. It's pretty impressive but I suppose you need to go through extreme measures to stay alive when you're on the bottom of the bird food chain.

Seal on Ice

More pictures from Prince William Sound, this one en route to Cedar Bay. There were seals and otters resting on little ice bergs. This one was so comfortable, he wasn't budging as the boat slowly chugged by. I love the way the water was glassy and reflective, showing off his beautiful fur coat.

Back From the Cold North

I'm back from Alaska. This is a picture of me in front of Meare's Glacier in Prince William Sound. The park ranger told me that the snow crystals are packed down under tremendous pressure and that pressure changes their crystal structure to produce their wonderfully cold looking icy blue color. It is really stunning and if you sit there long enough, you can watch the glaciers calve off huge chunks of ice into the sea. It's a little scary watching the huge glacial wave coming towards you realizing that the water is incredibly cold but, hey, that's why you're in a boat (that floats over the waves...). It's quite a rush. Overall, it was a fun trip with lots of stunning vistas and cute furry animals (heh). More later.