Our crew of four are gathered in the organized quiet of the pilothouse as my Fleming 65, Venture, slips through the glassy waters of Icy Strait, en route to Dundas Bay. Ahead, the snowcapped peaks of the Coast Range straddle the Alaskan horizon. Chris Conklin, Venture’s longtime captain, suggests that, with weather this good, we should seize the opportunity to head instead to infamous Lituya Bay.
We are all in instant agreement. With a spin of the wheel, we alter course 90 degrees and turn into the aptly named Cross Sound. In the distance, we glimpse Cape Spencer Light marking the entry into the formidable Gulf of Alaska.
Lituya Bay lies 40 miles north in the open waters of the gulf, and it is essential to be at its tricky entrance at high water slack. We estimate we will arrive too early, so we turn into narrow Dick’s Arm at the back side of the lighthouse to reset our ETA. On shore, we spot a mother brown bear grazing on
