Ocean Escapes
At the Edge of Alaska
By Tristan Rutherford
The Aleutian Islands
Alaskan Extension
Alaska doesn't stop at Anchorage. America continues west for another 2,500-kilometres across the Pacific, in a green garland of 300 volcanic islands, which stretch almost to the eastern edge of Asia. This northern arc of the Ring of Fire lays lost in a continental drift.
The Aleutian Islands are nominally part of the United States. In reality, they are an ocean apart. New York is closer to Amsterdam than the westernmost island of Attu. Until 2010, the world’s loneliest radio operators helped ships navigate through the archipelago from Attu. Due to a quirk in the international date line, the radio team were some of the last people on earth to celebrate Christmas on December 25. It is isolation personified.
Yet these volcanic peaks harbour gifts aplenty. Pacific salmon migrate to the Aleutian Islands from California and Japan. Humpbacks follow the salmon in snapping packs. From the mists above, albatrosses and fulmars swoop down on the whales’ lunchtime remains, completing this frozen food chain. The circle of life has remained unchanged since the original Aleut residents kayaked in 10,000 years ago.
Central European Time
Modern explorers sail in the wake of greats. In 1741, Danish cartographer Vitus Bering made an Aleutian island hop from Siberia to Alaska. Bering logged meadows and glaciers, leaping orcas and blue whales, and made the first European contact with indigenous Aleuts. The Bering Strait that separates Asia from the Americas bears his name.
German naturalist Georg Wilhelm Steller travelled on Bering’s ship. Wildlife was so abundant that Steller baptised ten unnamed species. Steller's sea eagle is one of the world's toughest raptors, robbing other birds and snatching land mammals. Steller's sea lions can weigh a tonne and rotate their flippers to waddle across the Aleutians’ black sand beaches. Steller's sea cow, a frosty relative of the dugong, proved easy meat for first explorers. Within 30 years of European discovery, this two-tonne kelp grazer became extinct.
In 1778, Captain James Cook saw seals and otters aplenty. The circumnavigator’s diary also noted plumes of smoke rising from the Aleutians’ 50 active volcanoes. If Owners position off Great Sitkin Island today, they may see crimson lava dripping down green cliffs. Imagine the topography of Scotland — if Mother Nature had downed a shot of whiskey then chucked the rest of the bottle into the flames.
A Steller’s sea eagle skims the water’s surface, a powerful presence in the stillness of the Aleutians.
Open Zoo
Four main island groups whip off Alaska like a stingray’s tail. Attu and the Near Islands are frigid, far-out and host one million seabirds — yet too few people to crew a superyacht. Next in line are the Rat Islands. Here tectonic plates meet nutrient-rich currents to nourish fur seals amid the most seismically active islands in the world. The islands are tailor-made for drone photography.
Closer to the Americas are the Andreanof Islands. They rank among the most dramatic in terms of colourful birdlife. Crested auklets kiss one another with luminous orange beaks. Red‑legged kittiwakes dance with burgundy boots. Bluethroats have striking turquoise beards and a chirp that sounds like a car alarm. Guests will be forgiven for pinching the Captain’s Zeiss binoculars for a closer look.
The most accessible part of the Aleutian chain — although that’s a relative term in Alaska’s wild west — are the Fox Islands. Most of the archipelago’s 7,000 residents live around Dutch Harbor, so called after a Dutch ship was the first to anchor in the bay. Moor up to climb a volcanic peak. Or mountain bike through an abandoned World War Two base. Or kayak through kelp forests. Just don’t cause offense by ordering anything other than king crab chowder or cod tacos. For home-made pizza and a glass of Chianti, sail 1,000-kilometres east.
Bear Necessity
The Aleutian rollercoaster ends at Katmai National Park on mainland Alaska. Explorer yachts can cruise this volcanic wilderness and anchor in Geographic Harbor, which swarms with brown bears.
Katmai National Park found fame thanks to its Fat Bear Week, which the Associated Press called "Alaska's most-watched popularity contest". During the annual contest, the US National Park Service invites voters to honour the bear who has fattened up most before their winter sleep. After an Aleutian Islands diet of wild salmon and raw exploration, any mammal will need a break.
Brown bears move through Katmai’s shallow river, gathering in numbers as the salmon run draws them in.
Which Yacht Will You Choose for Your Next Destination?
Discover Our Diverse Portfolio