Fjord Here We Come!!

 Knowing that we would be in the Endicott Arm and Dawes glacier area at around 5:30 in the morning, I made sure I was up and ready to click away.

I definitely was not going to miss this beauty which mother nature has had a hand in forever.

Approximately 50 miles southeast of Juneau, the Endicott Arm Fjord houses the impressive tidewater glacier, Dawes Glacier, at its head.

Located at the head of Endicott Arm Fjord and protected within the Tongass National Forest, Dawes Glacier was originally named “Young Glacier” in 1880 by John Muir. In 1892, the U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey changed it to its current name in honor of Massachusetts lawyer and statesman Henry Laurens Dawes.

"Endicott Arm Fjord is part of Alaska's Fords Terror Wilderness park covering a total area approx 2643 km2 (1020 mi2). The park consists of two deepwater narrow fjords - Tracy Arm (north) and Endicott Arm (south). Endicott Arm has length 45 km (28 mi) and around 20% of the waterway is ice-covered. During summer, the fjord has considerable floating ice."

The amazing fjord scenery is filled with rugged mountains, deep valleys, mighty waterfalls  and wildlife such as bears, deer, eagles, and harbor seals.  Unfortunately, we didn't see any wildlife, hence most of the captures are those of the rugged mountains and waterfalls.

Needless to say, with such beauty in front of us, I was not the only one clicking away.

There was lots of ice floating in the fjord, all of which had come from Dawes Glacier. 

 The ice came in all shapes and sizes and colors.

We saw examples of glacially carved terrain that included smooth, rounded mountains with domes and cirques and U-shaped valleys.

Due to strict environmental restrictions, cruise ships visiting the area have specific times of the day that they’re allowed to venture through the Endicott Arm Fjord to Dawes Glacier.

There are countless waterfalls and cascades along the rock walls of Endicott Arm, most of which are created by meltwater from the snowbanks high in the surrounding mountains. 

Their numerous presence promoted an opportunity to play with shutter speed to create that smooth flowing water.....of course not having a tripod did cause some bluriness.

For a brief moment the sun tried to come out. 

Consequently, causing some light shadows and making the scenery even more breath taking.

 But the moment was very short lived and the drizzle returned.

The entire experience took approximately six and half hours with the cruise ship retracing the same route back out of the fjord and heading towards Juneau.

 (source)