April 28th-Day 29

 At the potluck, Karina and I decided that we were going to go out in the morning and do a hike, possibly Mt. Jumbo trailhead. We ended up exploring a good part of South Douglas Trails, starting at 105, heading past 95, and then turning down 107(See map for details). We were unable to do Mt. Jumbo due to too much snow, but we were able to make our way around the lower trails(somehow without injury). The views were unbelievable. Five miles and 3 hours later we made it back home, with just enough time to eat lunch and then head out to the boats for presentations. Again we split up into groups of ten with a lead guide, and today we had Mike the Glaciologist! During the presentations we were able to see an array of animals, and to say I was excited was an understatement. Our first encounter was with a pod of Harbor Porpoises, who we could just make out in the distance, then we headed to an area that had a huge flock of  Bonaparte gulls that were feeding. As we were heading off to check out a whale sighting, we unexpectedly had a rare encounter with a Sea Otter. I've heard from other lead guides, including Scott Ranger and Mike that they have seen sea otters only a few times in all the years they have worked for Gastineau Guiding company. My day was only going to get better, because unbeknownst to me, we were about to have  an up close experience with a humpback whale. Following NOAA guidelines a whale was surfacing as close as 30-50 feet away from our ship. Until you see a whale this close it's hard to understand how big they actually are. I've yet to see a full fluke(Tail) or a breach(jumping out of the water) but being so close to the humpback whale was a magical moment for me.

The presentations were finished and we had a debrief once we got back to the dock. Linda, lead guide and head teacher, announced that we have officially finished Guide training and I am now a certified Alaskan Tour guide! A Big WHOOP WHOOP! I got back home, took a big nap, and made dinner. While eating dinner, I checked my email and saw that Richard sent me feedback on my presentation. He was happy with my presentation and said I was on the right track with my information. In addition he gave feedback as well as his help if I ever needed it. I'm going to take him up on the offer for sure!

Cass and I later that night finished season 2 of RPDR and made chocolate strawberries as a little midnight treat! 


A Map of South Douglas Trails

A view from our morning hike. You can see Mt. Juneau on the left and Mt. Roberts on the right, with a Carnival Cruise ship between the mountains.

Karina was standing up in this picture! The snow was about 2-3 feet deep in certain areas of the trail.

Cass and Maddison getting ready for boat presentations 


Both videos are in compliance with NOAA guidelines. Two different times of the whale surfacing! We were so close! 


RPDR + chocolate + strawberries = A great way to end the day with Cass

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