Table of Contents / Index to Anchorages / Sample: Port Nellie Juan, Mink Island / Updates to Cruising Guide / Port Valdez Security Zones Updates /
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The combined Port Nellie Juan and Kings Bay area is one of the most scenic regions in Prince William Sound. Signs of recent glaciation abound. In many areas, the vegetation has not yet had a chance to re-establish itself. The termini of eight of the area's nine valley glaciers have only recently retreated onto land leaving Nellie Juan Glacier as the only remaining tidewater glacier. The actions of glaciers on a granitic batholith have left Yosemite-like valleys containing imposing domes and sheer granite cliffs. The water is deep and relatively free of hazards. Numerous well-protected anchorages line the shores. Because of its unparalleled natural beauty and undeveloped state, this area has been proposed by five administrations for wilderness classification.
A nasty chop and waves higher than normally encountered in western Prince William Sound can build in the mouth of Nellie Juan during strong easterly and southeasterly winds. Such winds commonly reach into the bay as far as Blue Fjord where they usually die out as they meet an opposing wind off Nellie Juan Glacier. In settled weather the fjord is calm during the early part of the day. Toward late afternoon, the breeze off Nellie Juan Glacier stretches as far as Mink Island before encountering a sea breeze from the mouth. Kings Bay is ordinarily quite calm. Port Nellie Juan and Kings Bay experience fewer strong westerlies than do the fjords to the north, and their anchorages afford better protection from westerlies.
Land Management: All of Port Nellie Juan west of the ridge on the east side of McClure Bay is in the Chugach National Forest's proposed Nellie Juan Wilderness Study area.
MINK ISLAND: Along the northern shore, two miles southwest of the entrance to Culross Passage, Mink Island provides two good anchorages.
Pilotage: The more protected has its entrance to the northeast of Mink Island. On entering, especially when approaching from the southwest, take care to avoid the rock which shows only on low tide in the passageway at some distance east of the island. Favor the northeast side of the channel. Anchor in the west corner in 30 to 50 ft. about 0.1 mile east of the stream. There is a sunken barge closer in to the major stream. Try to locate the rock which shows only at certain tidal stages off the northwest point of Little Mink Island. There is adequate swinging room for a fair number of boats.
Strong gusts may blow into the cove from the east and southeast during foul weather. However, the holding bottom here is very good, especially with the anchor set uphill. With adequate scope, dragging anchor is rarely a problem. However, in westerlies, winds blowing into the anchorage put a "downhill" strain on the anchor. A second anchor may be required.
A second anchorage lies to the southwest of the islands across a shallow patch which nearly dries on minus tides. Passage between these anchorages should not be attempted except at extreme high water and only after locating the rock mentioned above northwest of Little Mink Island. This anchorage is best approached from the southwest where the channel is clear and deep in the middle. Anchor in 60 ft. at the head. This cove is open to the southwest to swell and winds off Nellie Juan Glacier but is reported to be quieter in easterly weather than the first anchorage.
Small, flat bottom boats often anchor between Big Mink Island and the eastern side of Little Mink. Rock ledges and shallow water limit the swinging room for larger craft.
Points of interest: Effects of a tsunami accompanying the 1964 Earthquake can still be seen. The barge, Nellie Juan No. 5, belonging to the cannery in McClure Bay, lies overturned about fifty yds. up in the woods in a tiny bight on the northern shore. Scars on trees along the bight show the passing of the tsunami and the amount of regrowth since 1964. On Little Mink Island, a large, cut log lies high and dry perched across a gully where the tsunami deposited it.
From the barge, one can follow a series of peat land bogs to the top of the low knoll overlooking the anchorage, islands and Port Nellie Juan.
The wetlands at the mouth of Mink River abut an important pink salmon spawning area classified as crucial habitat by the ADF&G. Large fish trap anchors and cables around trees betoken former fisheries activities. Many of the salmon spawn in the intertidal zone. This is perhaps an adaptation salmon in Prince William Sound have made to living area that has experienced frequent uplift and subsidence. Literally thousands of salmon spawn and die here, becoming food for a rich assortment of marine invertebrates, birds and mammals. Black bear can often be observed resting in the salt marsh grasses, feeding in the stream, or disappearing with a salmon into the woods. This is not a good place to pitch a tent. In August and early September, the smell of rotting salmon is sometimes overwhelming.
Big Mink Island has two bald eagle's nests. One can be seen from the anchorage, the other by rowing around the island to its southern side. The passage between the islands, with its numerous little bights and inviting shoreline, is an excellent area to explore by dinghy.
Camping: Campers sometimes camp on Big Mink Island. There are potential campsites along the banks of the Mink River, a major salmon stream; however, black bears frequenting this area have been known to challenge intruders and to destroy kayaks.
Table of Contents / Index to Anchorages / Sample: Port Nellie Juan, Mink Island / Updates to Cruising Guide / Port Valdez Security Zones Updates /
Prince William Sound Books Home Page / Alaska Cruising Guides / Ordering information