Winter is Coming - Time to Head South

After traveling hundreds of miles north to Glacier Bay to see beautiful wildlife, we ran into these three huge sea lions at the Petersburg, AK fuel dock. The attendant said they live there. Turns out we didn't need to travel so far, after all! (However, Petersburg doesn't have quite the pristine beauty that Glacier Bay does!!)

We were unexpectedly holed up in Coffman Cove, Alaska for several days on our south-bound journey. While there, we met a man who generously offered to take us to explore the beautiful rainforest of Coffman Cove.

"Dead Heads" (shown below), are logs saturated with water so that only one tip is visible above water.  They are common dangers in Northwest waters. where ever logging activities are found.

 A collision with one would likely impale a boat. This one was within eyesight, but careful watch kept it at a safe distance.

Porpoises are very quick, very fun visitors at sea! They are a great joy to have around, but they are so fast that this is the best photo I could come up with! They swim with the boat for a couple hundred yards, sometimes in the bow, sometimes at stern.

One of Robert's favorite perches on the boat is on the salon settee, where he watches his mom do dishes and make meals.

While there, he loves to take the top of the trash can on and off, and we never know what he will throw away next!! Note the guilty look on his face.

This photo of the dock at Port Neville demonstrates the dramatic tide changes of the Inside Passage.

Notice the dock on the water is wrapped around pilings, so it will rise and fall with the tide, which will change the slope of the ramp. (There are all sorts of algebraic slope teaching ideas that this photo conjures!)

In Southern Canadian waters, the Canadian Navy practices their maneuvers. One beautiful evening, we were sure they were practicing on Calpurnia.