Alaska Day 10

We started the day in Alert Bay, British Columbia which is a native community on Cormorant Island near the northeast coast of Vancouver Island. We took a guided tour of the U'mista Cultural Center, which houses a world-renowned collection of masks and other artifacts, and saw a native dance performance.

In the afternoon we cruised Johnstone Strait looking for killer whales. We found some at a distance in the preserve set aside for them. You can tell this is a male orca from the size of the dorsal fin. A couple "floating Hyatts" passed us while we were there so it is understandable that the preserve was created to project the whales from passing ships. There is a "rubbing beach" within the preserve where the whales rub against the rocks on the beach and no one is sure why they do it. The cetacean expert on board was ecstatic to witness the behavior in person.