The Volendam has begun its spring/summer season cruising beautiful coastal Alaska. We visit the ports of Skagway, Juneau and Ketchikan, with a day trip to Glacier Bay, home of the Grand Pacific and Marjerie glaciers, and also trips to the magnificent John Hopkins, Reed and Lamplugh glaciers. Along the way to Juneau we also travel Tracy Arm Fjord, the outlet of the twin Sawyer glaciers. While all these locations are spectacular, each offering its own unique charm, none may be quite so thrilling as the activity of the Marjerie glacier.
The Volendam comes within a mile and a half of this glacier. It is so massive it seems as if we are only a thousand feet away. Here we witness first hand the power of Mother Nature as huge chunks of ice break off the glacier and crash with tremendous force into the water. This phenomenon is known as "calving". Here is a video I was fortunate enough to capture last week:
For size comparison, here are a group of kayakers who passed by the glacier just minutes prior to the calving:
The impact of the calving was so powerful it created a wave that mildly rocked our ship. What tremendous power to behold, and a fantastic opportunity aboard the MS Volendam to do so.
VODM Techspert|Jason Coleman
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