LuLu Belle Tour

Valdez is another one of the towns that has history connecting it to the 1964 earthquake.  Since Valdez is an ice free port, it has always been very important to Alaska.  The earthquake virtually destroyed the entire city.  But the folks in Alaska have a resilience that is amazing.  The town site was rebuilt nearby.  The old town site is now a historic site and a very interesting place to visit.  We saw pictures of the rebuilding process and read how it was accomplished.  Sometimes, a disaster brings good things with the bad.  The new town was laid out with care and included water, electric, gas and telephone connectivity.  In a state where many places still use out houses and carry in water, I’d say it was a real step up.

Valdez is on Prince William Sound; no visit would be complete without visiting Columbia Glacier.  Some of the folks we met traveling along the way told us that the tour on the LuLu Belle was not to be missed.  Ah, but traveling with a young dog makes things complicated especially since she is a chewer.  We discussed the situation and decided that Jim would go fishing on day and I would go on the LuLu Belle -- works for me!

Valdez is a magical place.  Glacier covered mountains surround the port town.  The heavy, white clouds rest on the mountain tops as if they are caressing them.  The day of the tour, the clouds were especially thick and some were colored with gray.  Rain was in the forecast but was not due for another day; I surely hoped they were right.

The LuLu Bell, unlike most of the tour vessels is a lovely yacht.  The tour group was small so there was plenty of room for everyone to move around and take pictures.  The Captain was so entertaining and knowledgeable; he talked the entire cruise and it lasted 8.5 hours!  As soon as we pulled out of our slip, I felt a rush of excitement and hoped we would see many great things.  Indeed we did.  We saw Otters, Puffins, Humpback Whales, Doll Porpoises, Sea Lions and Seals, Eagles and of course, the Columbia Glacier.  The wind was freezing cold, but who cared?  Not me!  I took hundreds of pictures but selected just a few to share.  Ride along with me as we cruise the Prince William Sound.

As we left the harbor, we passed the Saga.  If you happen to watch the Most Dangerous Catch (I do not watch it myself so I may not have the name exactly right), you know that the Saga is the ship they sail on.  You can see it in the forefront of the picture.

One of the most important things to the economy of Alaska is the Pipeline.  This Pipeline begins at Prudhoe Bay and ends at Valdez at an amazing port.  The land was originally a waterfront homestead purchased for $250.  Luckily for the homesteaders, the water there is very deep forming a natural harbor.  They sold it to the gas consortium that build the pipeline and terminus for $8 million.  Not a bad payday I would say.  As a result of the deep harbor, the pipeline can load directly into tankers or into holding tanks at the facility.  Oh and by the way, both the pipeline and the terminus was built without a cent of government money.  Not only that, but the cost was recouped in just three years.  Valdez is really quite unique.  Its major industries are fishing, oil, gas and tourism.  One would think that these could not exist in the same place, but they do indeed.  Right next door to the oil terminus is a gas refinery, and next to that is a Salmon Hatchery.  Everyone involved in all of the industries are very focused on the environment and keeping everything pristine in order to protect all the land and aquatic life.  And they absolutely do!  The Sound’s water is pristine and fish and other sea animals abound.

Shortly after leaving the harbor, we came upon a grouping of Sea Otters taking a nap.  These cute little creatures spend a great deal of time laying on their backs, floating -- even when they are sleeping.  If they are startled, the instantly flip over and dive to safety.  They were so cute, and even though at one point they were endangered, they had rebounded and are plentiful.

All along the route, there were so many things to see from rock formations to wildlife.  Here is one of many spectacular waterfalls that we passed.  It tumbled about 300 feet down over the rocks and finally into the Sound.

Another waterfall tumbling to the Sound.

There were a number of caves along the way.  The Captain told us that Puffins hide in the caves to keep Eagles from stealing their eggs or young chicks.  We actually sailed into one of these caves to see these birds hiding in the crevices.  We were so close to the sides of the cave, I could reach out and touch the damp rocks.  It was scary.

These three Puffins flew out of the cave and landed in the water not far from the cave.  They are curious looking birds.  We had seen them at SeaLife Center in Seward so it was nice to see them in the wild.

Each time we passed a Seal or Sea Lion, the Captain would say we really did not want to stop and see them.  Finally, he stopped and explained that these animals eat the Salmon and thus, the locals do not like them and consider them a nuisance.  Nevertheless, he finally stopped for us to take a closer look and take pictures.

These two fellows were part of a rookery we passed.  Even if they do eat the Salmon, I think they are marvelous.

We were lucky to come across this fishing boat that was putting out a huge net to catch Salmon.  As we sailed up, the smaller boat was just completing the circle with the net.  The two vessels then perform an intricate sort of dance in order to land their catch.

Once the circle is complete, the end of the net is passed to the larger vessel that begins to pull it into the boat.  At the same time, the smaller boat hooks on to the ship and pulls it around and outward so the net will fully encase the fish.  Gradually, they tighten the net until it is pulled into the boat with the catch.

The Seals were so bold.  They would jump over the net into the circle and get the Salmon.  They would catch a fish, come to the surface with it and smash their head side-to-side to kill the fish.  It was violent to watch.  There were a number of the Seals going into and out of the net.  It must have been frustrating to the fishermen to see them getting the valuable catch.  I could really understand why the locals have no love for these greedy creatures.

At the end, the catch is hauled into the boat.  It is really hard work.  These fishermen depend on the three short months of summer to earn enough money to sustain them.

 No tour would be complete without whales.  We saw three Humpback Whales who teased us with their dives.  They would come to the surface and roll through the water and then dive only to reappear a distance away.  Only once did one of the whales show us his tail.  Alas, he was too far away for a good picture.:(  No matter how many times I see these creatures, I am always in awe of them.

At last, the Columbia Glacier came into view.  What can I say, it was a marvel to behold.  It flows from the ice fields far up in the mountains.  As we sat before it, we could hear the ice cracking, sharp loud sounds.  We had been there only a few minutes when there was a loud crack and a big piece of ice calved from the face.  Amazing!  By the time we left, we had seen five in all.  But the first one, it was the biggest.

 Up close, you can see the beautiful, deep blue color of the exposed ice.  This blue color appears over time as the snow is packed and ice is formed.  It is compacted more and more, until all the color spectrums except blue are lost.  It is beautiful to behold.

After a calving event, darker patches of blue are revealed.  This is an example of how it looked.

Yep, that’s me before that beautiful glacier.  I wish Jim had been with me.

A beautiful island formation we saw on the return to Valdez.  A nice ending to a wonderful day.  I hope Jim’s fishing trip is as good as my tour.