Khutze Inlet is always a favorite stop, and not just because we usually see bears, but because the scenery is just so insanely beautiful. Add a blue sky and bright warm sun to that equation and…well, you’ll see.
We anchored Airship next to the tall waterfall…dropped the anchor in about 100 feet and backed up toward the shallow area and saw 30 feet all stretched out, so we’re good. Kali came in and rafted to us and we immediately got both dinghies down to go look for bears and explore the estuaries. The tide was almost high and still rising, so we figured we could probably get a good distance up river!
Not five minutes into our cruise up the left side we spotted a young brown bear on the bank, eating grass for a while, and then digging enthusiastically for something.
The trumpeter swan we’ve seen here the past couple years (gotta be the same one, right?) took off and I tried to get a photo as it did…a little soft (focus), but also kinda cool.
I took these so I could look up what this plant was…narrowed it down to some kind of dock: Western Dock, Pacific Willow Dock, or Curly Dock.
And I believe these to be red elderberries which were everywhere here, and apparently the bears love them!
The scenery, right??? Amazing.
We cruised all around the estuaries for over an hour but didn’t see any more bears after that first one.
Dinner tonight on Airship! We grilled up some steaks and topped them with a butter sauce, chopped leftover asparagus from last night, and the last of our fresh crab. Delicious! Ralph and Mike grilled some pork chops with applesauce, and we watched the Spain vs. England soccer game on the big screen. Fun evening!