Wild Alaska: A Bering Sea Adventure
From $,9980 per person, double occupancy; single rates from $15,980.
July 6–20, 2009
Aboard the Clipper Odyssey
A pdf of the tour brochure is coming soon!
See ship info and a deck plan for the Clipper Odyssey (pdf)
Trip Overview
Witness the natural wonders of Alaska on an itinerary that showcases the islands and coasts of the Bering Sea, plus Russia. The North Pacific is rich with wildlife—seabirds, walrus, Arctic fox, fur seals and bears, in addition to plentiful pods of minke, orca, fin, sei and humpback whales. Impressive landscapes, from pristine coves and beaches to open tundra and soaring mountains, serve as dramatic backdrops.
Trip Itinerary
Monday, July 6, 2009: Home / Anchorage, Alaska
Arrive independently in Anchorage and check in at our downtown hotel. Later, join the group for a briefing and welcome dinner. (D)
Tuesday, July 7: Anchorage / Seward / Embark Clipper Odyssey
Enjoy a morning at leisure in Anchorage, with lunch at the hotel. Drive three hours via motor coach to Seward, where we will embark the Clipper Odyssey in the late afternoon and set sail in the evening. (B, L, D)
Wednesday, July 8: Kodiak, Kodiak Island
Cruise toward Kodiak in the morning, stopping to explore the Triplet Islands in Marmot Bay. The islands’ steep cliffs host thousands of nesting puffins and cormorants. Back onboard, scan the sea for humpback, sei and fin whales and pods of orcas. Dock at the city of Kodiak, a bustling fishing port settled by Russian fur traders in 1784. The town was established eight years later as the first capital of Russia’s North American colonies. Local guides give tours of the Holy Resurrection Russian Orthodox Church, with its prominent blue onion domes, and Erskine House, a National Historic Landmark built in 1809 and now housing the Kodiak Baranof Museum. Exhibits in the Alutiiq Museum detail the history and culture of Alaska’s native people. (B, L, D)
Thursday, July 9: Geographic Harbor, Katmai National Park and Preserve
Tucked away at the far reaches of Amalik Bay, Geographic Harbor is surrounded by mountains, and access through its narrow entrance depends on the tides. Cruise intersecting inlets by Zodiac and watch for brown bears digging up clams along the shoreline. (B, L, D)
Friday, July 10: Semidi Islands
Sail along the Alaska Peninsula, a nearly uninhabited wilderness except for the 2.5 million birds that live on the Semidis. Make a Zodiac landing to walk on a small, driftwood-strewn beach and trace the shores of Aghiyuk Island, home to huge colonies of seabirds, including northern fulmars, common murres and black-legged kittiwakes. (B, L, D)
Saturday, July 11: Unga Island, Shumagin Islands
The ship anchors at Unga Island today. Its multiple bays offer excellent opportunities to spot sea otters and peregrine falcons. Take a guided walk amid fields of wildflowers and along the streets of a long-abandoned yet photogenic town. Scattered pieces of petrified wood are remnants of an ancient metasequoia forest—evidence that the region’s climate was once much warmer. Take advantage of the evening light to search for whales along popular migration routes. (B, L, D)
Sunday, July 12: High Island / Otter Cove, Unimak Island
Cruise along High Island in the morning, watching for the thousands of horned and tufted puffins along the island’s cliffs. Later, board Zodiacs and head for the largest Aleutian island, Unimak, which is home to one of the most active volcanoes on the Aleutian arc. The volcano, Shishaldin, has erupted 29 times since 1775. This is also the only island in the Aleutians with a population of brown bears, which we may spot along the sandy beaches or flowering tundra. Join an exploration of the beach or an easy trek up a tundra hill. (B, L, D)
Monday, July 13: Baby Islands / Dutch Harbor, Unalaska Island
Sail among the Fox Islands, watching for minke whales, which are the smallest baleen whales in the northern Pacific. The five tiny, volcanic Baby Islands teem with puffins and whiskered auklets. Originally a major region for the processing of fur seal pelts, Dutch Harbor is now the busiest and most productive fishing harbor in the United States. WWF has worked in this region for years to prevent illegal fishing and to educate fishermen on the dangers of overfishing. During our explorations of the harbor region, we’ll see remnants of World War II buildings and artillery and visit the oldest onion-domed church in Alaska. (B, L, D)
Tuesday, July 14: St. George Island, Pribilof Islands
Explore the small town of St. George, whose residents include about 150 people of Aleut and Russian descent. A picturesque Russian Orthodox church overlooks the Bering Sea, and a busy fur seal rookery provides excellent photo opportunities—especially when the pups are learning to negotiate the rocky terrain. St. George is the world’s largest breeding ground for parakeet auklets, and around 250,000 nesting red-legged kittiwakes live here, too. (B, L, D)
Wednesday, July 15: St. Paul Island, Pribilof Islands
In 1786, Russian explorer Gerassim Pribilof searched the southern Bering Sea for northern fur seals. He found a bounty of them among the five (now-eponymous) islands. The seals nearly became extinct from hunting. Work by WWF and other conservation groups has since helped the Pribilof ecosystem recover. An estimated 2.5 million birds make up one of the world's largest seabird colonies, and the islands are one of only three places where northern fur seals now breed. We’ll explore the region with our naturalists. We’ll also visit St. Paul, the largest community of Aleuts in the world, with 800 residents. Observing the whirl of activity along the cliffs here is also a delight: Thousands upon thousands of birds—horned and tufted puffins, red-legged kittiwakes, red-faced cormorants and crested, least and parakeet auklets—come and go, circle in huge flocks, call out in a variety of squawks and fend off Arctic foxes looking to snatch their eggs. (B, L, D)
Thursday, July 16: St. Matthew and Hall Islands
Unusual geological formations—the result of cooling igneous volcanic rock—mark the deserted island of St. Matthew. Countless thick-billed murres, black-legged kittiwakes, fulmars and puffins call the cliffs and columns their seasonal home. Enjoy a walk through meadows of blooming pink and yellow louseworts and blue Jacob’s ladder. You may spot the rare McKay’s bunting nesting or Arctic foxes scurrying along the hillsides. During Zodiac excursions around the arches, waterfalls and sea stacks of the Hall Islands, watch for walruses and birds. (B, L, D)
Friday, July 17: Gambell, St. Lawrence Island
A Siberian Yupik community hosts our visit to St. Lawrence, a windswept, pebbly stretch of land reaching out to the sea. As you walk through the village, you will see walrus hides stretched on drying racks, later to be made into skin boats called umiaks. Birders can enjoy a hike to look for red-necked phalaropes, long-tailed ducks, yellow and white wagtails and rare emperor geese. You may also choose to take a tour focused on geology or native history. (B, L, D)
Saturday, July 18: Cross the International Date Line, thus “losing” the day.
Sunday, July 19: Provideniya, Russia / Cruising Cape Dezhnev and the Chukchi Peninsula / Alaska
Go ashore in Provideniya, the commercial port of this sparsely populated region, to tour the regional museum and watch locals perform a traditional dance. Cruise along Cape Dezhnev and the Chukchi Peninsula, which is the northeastern-most point of Asia and the Russian Far East. Watch for short-tailed shearwaters, northern fulmars, Laysan albatross and fork-tailed storm petrels. On clear days, you can see all the way across the Bering Strait to Alaska. When we return to U.S. waters this evening, we’ll “gain back” the day previously lost by crossing the International Date Line. (B, L, D)
Sunday, July 19: Little Diomede, Arctic Circle
Cross the Arctic Circle exactly where the International Date Line intersects it—an exact spot on the globe that few travelers cross. The American island of Little Diomede lies just three nautical miles from its Russian counterpart, Big Diomede, yet it is an entire continent and time zone away. In the winter, natives of both islands can walk or snowmobile between the islands across the frozen Bering Strait. Explore the tiny Aleut village of Ignaluk, which is built into the side of a cliff. Our hosts,dressed in traditional garb, perform Aleut songs and dances. Thousands of least and crested auklets flock around the slopes adjacent to the village. (B, L, D)
Monday, July 20: Nome / Disembark Clipper Odyssey / Anchorage / Home
After breakfast, disembark the Clipper Odyssey and transfer to the airport for our flight to Anchorage and connect with flights home. (B, meals aloft)
