Sneaky fast Low Tide? The Spirit of Glacier Bay runs aground

[underpants]

In this photo provided by the National Park Service, the cruise ship the Spirit of Glacier Bay, is shown Monday, July 7, 2008, after it ran aground in Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve in Alaska.
(AP Photo/National Park Service)

A short cruise to see glaciers and whales ended up being an adventure with Coast Guard helicopters and rescue boats when a Cruise West ship grounded yesterday in Alaska's Glacier Bay National Park.

It was the second time this season that a Cruise West ship has hit bottom in Alaska's Inside Passage.

The Spirit of Glacier Bay was on the third day of a four-day Glacier Bay Highlights cruise out of Juneau when it ran aground on a sandbar yesterday at 7 a.m. The Coast Guard responded with two helicopters and three response vessels, and found no injuries to any of the 24 passengers or 27 crew members onboard the vessel, and no reported pollution.

While the Coast Guard waited until high tide to let the ship re-float on its own, passengers and non-essential crew were transferred to a Glacier Bay Park Service vessel and taken to Gustavus, Ala. Cruise West was working yesterday to return them to Juneau.

The vessel re-floated at 4:23 p.m., the Coast Guard said, and was transferred to a nearby dock to assess any possible damage and the cause of the grounding.

This is the exploration cruise line's second grounding this summer in Alaska. In early June, the Spirit of Alaska hit a rock in Tracy Arm fjord on the second day of a week-long cruise. That cruise was canceled, and the 40 passengers onboard were transferred to another Cruise West ship leaving from Juneau the next day.

http://www.usatoday.com/travel/cruises/item.aspx?type=blog&ak=52390188.blog

[TheCowsCameHome]

1. Nautical version of McInsanes "Straight Talk Express".............

[Neshanic]

2. Just spitballing here, but one would think a Captain of a boat would know the "tide" thing.

[ProdigalJunkMail]

3. well.. the picture is a little misleading

the boat ran aground while still surrounded by water...then the tide went out while the boat was immobile...not like the captain was sitting watching the water pull away from the boat and just did nothing out of choice...

sP

[underpants]

4. A friend of mine grew up sailing

you are correct, they are usually aware of this

:eyes:

My thoughts exactly Neshanic

[paparush]

5. Looks like it snagged that sandbar..which looks kinda new..but its only

a foot or two higher than the surrounding bottom? The captain didn't have much depth to work with there..

[Winterblues]

6. According to local news he was sort of drifting and watching whales

He was not moving at any speed to speak of and no damage at all was done other than to his pride. The tides this last week have been extremely low but he should have been well aware of that. There is tremendous current in that area and it probably had much to do with it..Embarrassing but no harm done..