/ LC Travel/ Alaska: Exploring Glacier Bay National Park, with Stephen Beckham, Emeritus Professor of History

Alaska: Exploring Glacier Bay National Park, with Stephen Beckham, Emeritus Professor of History

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April 20 - 27th, 2024

See the wonders of Alaska together with distinguished historian Stephen Dow Beckham. Explore with him and learn about the history of the region and a sail through islands and fiords not typically reached by larger ships.

Our group will be 18 to 26 people and sail on a special small cruise ship with the capacity of about 80.

HIGHLIGHTS

Two full days in Glacier Bay National Park
Tidewater glaciers: Margerie, Grand Pacific, and the twin Sawyers
Explore the shores and fjords of the Tongass National Forest and Tracy Arm
Bushwhack and hike in old-growth forest and glacial outwash fields
Whale watching in Icy Strait & Frederick Sound
Search for wildlife—bears, sea lions, seals, porpoises, eagles
Birding at South Marble Island—puffins, oystercatchers, cormorants, and kittiwakes
Natural history narration from expert onboard guides

ITINERARY

B=Breakfast, L=Lunch, D=Dinner

Kick start the morning with on-deck yoga stretches and a strong cup of coffee. Energized and snug in your kayak, glide around in remote bays off of Icy Strait through giant bullwhip kelp that can grow to over 100 feet long. Join the gang in a skiff to a rocky outcropping to watch sea lions play. Or, step into mud boots for a forest hike with your top-notch, naturalist guides who have plenty to share about everything Alaska—marine biology, plants, and even geology. On board, soak it all in as you soak in the hot tub. (BLD)

This crown jewel of America’s national parks covers 3.3 million acres (that’s a tad smaller than the state of Connecticut). Let that sink in. Most visitors see the same sliver of the park as everyone else. Not you. You’re going the furthest and exploring parts that 99% of visitors never go to. And you have two days to do it. Hike the outwash field of glaciers winding down the Fairweather Mountain Range. The cool breeze off the nearby snow and icefields is energizing. If you motor over to Dundas Bay, keep your eye out for bears, humpbacks, and if you’re lucky, a wolf sighting. Kayak the bay. Bushwhack into the forest. Discover Glacier Bay. (BLD)

Enjoy the top deck for a sunrise or morning stretch. Meander through glacier-carved fjords along the Chichagof coast. Then anchor. It’s a prime time to lower the kayaks and skiffs. Camera in hand, set off on land and sea explorations. Closer inspection by skiff, moss-dripping trees run right down to the water. Any bears in there? With one of the world’s largest populations of bears, it’s possible. Go searching for giant trees and tidal pools. Hiking in the Tongass, it won’t take long to find them. Your eagle-eyed guides lead the pack—and pull up the rear. (BLD)

Hang out and enjoy the show. You may find yourself in ‘whale soup’ surrounded by feeding humpbacks swimming these abundant glacial waters. Based on wind and weather, your expedition team has the lineup of adventures all mapped out. Cruise past Five Fingers Lighthouse, Alaska’s oldest light station and The Brothers Islands, where sea lions nap on rocky nobs. Paddle into the deeps of Port Houghton or Windham Bay or head ashore for a hike. Tonight, toast another big day in Alaska. (BLD)

Take an early peek out your window. Fjord cliffs reach skyward. Floating ice. And deep u-shaped valleys. There’s no abracadabra here. Mother Nature’s magic is real. Cruise past harbor seals and their pups lounging on chunks of ice. Tides permitting, your skiff driver knows the ropes and guides you along. It’s a mashup of towering walls, temperamental currents, and the Coastal Mountains. So many waterfalls. Mountain goats show off fancy foot work on the cliffs, so keep your eyes open. Finish your week with Captain’s dinner and post-dinner cocktials watching the week’s “photo journal” by your crew. (BLD)

Cost

Deposit: $500 per cabin (non-refundable)
Navigator Cabin: These cabins have a fixed queen bed and two porthole windows or two twin beds and view windows. These cabins are below the main deck. ($4,995 per person)
Trailblazer Cabin: These cabins are all on the Upper deck, all with fixed twin beds and two view windows. ($5,355 per person)
Pathfinder Cabin: Each Cabin can be set up as a king or two twin beds. ($5,695 per person)
Commodore Suite: Each cabin can be set with one king or two twins in the bedroom. The sitting room has a foldout sofa and a step-out balcony. ($7,990 per person)

Airfare is not included.

Deposit Due Date (paid to Lewis & Clark College, non-refundable): November 15, 2023

Final Payment Due Date (paid to UnCruise): January 19, 2024

Registration

Ship: Safari Endeavour

Polished, unwavering, and upscale, the Safari Endeavour may be the workhorse of the fleet but it’s her zest-for-life persona that’s remembered most. She looks sharp—a nod to the crew who work hard to keep her that way. Wood fixtures and accents shine and artwork highlights the warm and cool waters where she sails. Her roomy lounge, dining room, and sun deck are undisputed, but the Safari Endeavour claims to have the biggest heart, too.

To learn more about this vessel and see pictures if rooms go here.

Academic Leader

Stephen Dow Beckham

Dr. Beckham is a distinguished Historian and Professor Emeritus, having taught at Lewis & Clark from 1977 to 2012. Over the years, he taught at the undergraduate college, the graduate school’s teacher education program, and the law school’s Indian law program.

Stephen has taught eight Travel/Study seminars for Stanford University in SE Alaska, five seminars for the U.S. Forest Service using the ferries of the Alaska Marine Highways, three programs for World Explorer Cruises, and one seminar for a week for Young President’s Organization. Some of the topics we might explore aboard include:

“Alaska Sojourners” (wilderness seekers, writers, lighthouse keepers)
“Traditional Culture of the Northwest Coast Indians”
“Russian America: Exploration, Fur Trade, and Colonization”
“Lure of the Northwest Coast: Exploration and the Enlightenment”
“Totems, Masks, and Artistic Motifs of the Northwest Coast Culture”
“Rushing for Gold: The Klondike and Boundary Issues in SE Alaska”

He is known for his work with Native Americans and the American West, especially the Pacific Northwest and the Lewis and Clark Expedition. Beckham is a leading authority on Indian law and has been called as an expert witness in many cases nationally involving Indian treaty rights, casinos, reservation resources and boundaries.

Beckham has been honored as the Oregon Professor of the Year, and has been the recipient of the American Historical Association’s Asher Distinguished Teaching Award, and the Earle A. Chiles Award for “contributions to the understanding of the high desert interior of the American West.”

Beckham has authored over a dozen books including:
Requiem for a People: The Rogue Indians and the Frontiersmen (1971)
Tall Tales from Rogue River: The Yarns of Hathaway Jones (1974)
Indians of Western Oregon: This Land Was Theirs (1977)
Lewis & Clark College (1991)
Many Faces: An Anthology of Oregon Autobiography (1993)
Lewis and Clark in Oregon Country: From the Rockies to the Pacific (2002)
Literature of the Lewis and Clark Expedition (2003)
Oregon Indians: Voices from Two Centuries (2006)