We had an absolutely fabulous day in Seward yesterday. The weather was gorgeous. All four of us went on an 8 hour boat trip into Kenai Fjords National Park with a great crew from Major Marine Tours. It began just before noon and we got back at almost 8 pm. The cruise included an all you can eat prime rib and salmon buffet as well. As you can see, we got up close and personal with two glaciers in Aialik Bay. Note the kayakers in front of the second glacier. Four kayakers debarked from our boat for an overnight stay near the glaciers. The bigger of the two glaciers is known as Holgate glacier. The panorama shot is four separate photographs taken with my 70-200mm and stitched together in Photoshop CS4. I think it turned out pretty well.
We saw some orcas and also a humpback whale after we left the glaciers. In the killer whale photograph you can see two adult orcas and a baby orca blowing in front of them. YOu should have seen the people on the boat whenever a wildlife sighting was made. Whichever side the sighting was on, everyone went to that side of the boat. Nothing like a bunch of tourists wanting to get the best shot they possibly can. Everyone one was pretty well behaved though and moved out of the way once they had their shot, so others could also get a chance. 
We stopped at some rocks where kittiwakes and puffins were known to be. They are no longer breeding but still live in the area. The captain took our boat in very close to the rocks and I managed to get some nice shots. A Canon 1D3 would have been better though. We also spotted stellar sea lions sunning themselves on the rocks. Note the brands on two of the sea lions.
On the way back, we marvelled at the great scenery on shore as well. Snow capped mountains, fog patches….truly stunning. I caught this charter fishing boat on the way back to port in Seward. 
We all agreed that this was our best day in Alaska so far.
2 Comments
Mark/Chris,
You are traveling close to two of our Tiffin friends. Maybe you will meet up. Here is one of the web sites:
http://didelottravels.typepad.com/
Regards,
Richard and Patsy King
Hi Great shots, sure looked like the perfect day tobe out on the water. Keep up with the photos.
John and Karen