Imagine sitting on the deck of a boat, sipping lemonade while whales breech in the distance, sea otters playfully engage one another and bald eagles circle overhead calling the spirit of Alaska. This dream can become a reality when you embark on a tour of Prince William Sound with Stan Stephens Glacier and Wildlife Cruises.
The Stan Stephens family has been operating in Valdez since 1971. They are a 100% Alaskan family-owned and operated business, which means when you travel with them, you are a part of the Stephens family. With multiple departures daily, travelers are offered several ways to tour eastern Prince William Sound. The Columbia Glacier cruise gives passengers a chance to explore up-close Alaska’s largest tidewater glacier. The Meares Glacier tour will take you to an advancing and very actively calving glacier. Nowhere else will you get to see up-close these magnificent, compacted rivers of ice. Glaciers grow and retreat in response to climate change. They carve out valleys, move mountains and re-shape landscapes.
Tours range in length from 6 1⁄2 to 9 1⁄2 hours. All tours are fully narrated by Alaskan residents eager to share the culture, land and wildlife that makes them proud to call Prince William Sound home. Informative topics include Alaskan natives indigenous to the Sound, gold and copper mining, commercial fishing, the 1964 Alaskan earthquake, the Trans-Alaska Pipeline and the events surrounding the largest oil spill in U.S. history from the Exxon Valdez - Stan Stephen’s vessels were the first to carry response observers to the spill site. You will travel in comfort with Stan Stephens as all tours include complimentary meals, coffee, tea and lemonade. Small snack bars are found on each vessel. For those who may have a sea-queasy stomach, note that the waters of eastern Prince William Sound are known as some of the calmest waters in Alaska. While they cannot guarantee that you will see all available wildlife at one time, these have been seen on the cruises: Orca whales, Humpback whales, porpoises, sea lions, sea otters, puffins, bald eagles, goats and bears. For more information or to book a tour call Stan Stephens Cruises toll free at 866-867-1297.
Sadly, Stan Stephens passed away in September 2013 but his legacy and dreams, including a relentless dedication to protecting the environment of Prince William Sound, will continue to be proudly upheld by his family and employees.
