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We offer Alaska raft trips that offer scenic views, wildlife viewing, fishing, and whitewater.
Custom group Alaska rafting adventures are available on request. If have interested in something special or participating in an exploratory expedition, please contact us with your ideals or to see what plans are being made.
Kongakut River - 10 day Arctic National Wildlife Refuge Rafting Safari. Explore Alaska's remote Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) by raft on the "river of caribou". Our trip coincides with the annual migration of the 130,000-strong Porcupine caribou herd and passes through some of the world's most pristine wilderness.
Lake Creek - 7 day Whitewater Rafting and Fishing Adventure. Our favorite fly-in wilderness adventure river, great combination exciting whitewater and great Alaska fishing. Lake Creek offers almost continuous Class II/III whitewater with a few Class IV rapids, five species of salmon, rainbow trout and arctic grayling.
Chulitna River - 4 day Denali Raft Adventure. An excellent family adventure and sampling of Alaska's best wilderness and geography at a casual pace. We travel through Denali State Park, upper Susitna Valley and take out near Trapper Creek, a historic gold mining town. |
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Minke Whale - Balaenoptera Acutorostrata
Wildlife Whale Watching Glacier Cruise
Locally called "Stinky Minke" by the tour boat captains in the Seward/Kenai Fjords area.
Basic Facts
Minke was an eighteenth century Norwegian whaler who regularly broke the rules regarding the size of whale he was permitted to hunt. Soon, all the small whales became known as "Minke" whales. In time, the name was formally adopted as the name for this species.
The minke whale is a member of the suborder Mysticete, or mustached whale. The smallest baleen whales in the North Pacific, they average 27 feet and weigh five to nine tons. Their mouth houses 260 to 360 plates of baleen at 12 inches each. They have a narrow, acutely pointed, triangular rostrum. Their highly variable dorsal fin is on the last third of their back. They are a bluish dark gray above with a lighter coloring below. A bright white patch or diagonal band goes across the top of the pectoral fin. They have a low and indistinct blow that starts underwater and continues half a meter out of the water. This makes spotting the blow especially difficult in all but the calmest weather. As they blow, their fin appears simultaneously and flukes are never shown.
In the Kenai Fjords, we apply the name "Stinky Minke" when referring to this animal. The nickname is due to the difficulty in spotting a minke twice. The minke has a habit of staying down for extended periods and may be on the surface for just a few blows before diving for 20 minutes.
Habitat, Range and Local Sightings
Isolated populations of minkes live in the north Pacific, north Atlantic, and the Southern Hemisphere. The International Whaling Commission considers the North Pacific stock to be a "Protection Stock" because of the high uncertainty of the estimated numbers. Minke whales are not listed as endangered, but the population in the north Pacific (between 17,000 and 28,000) is considerably smaller than that of the north Atlantic or Southern Hemisphere.
In Alaska, we find minkes traveling through bays and shallow coastal waters in the summer months. In the park, Pilot Rock seems to be the most likely place to spot a minke. Minkes move to subtropical areas in the winter, although their migrations do not always follow strict seasonal patterns.
Food and Survival Strategies
Minke whales in the North Pacific feed mostly on krill and sandlance. Southern populations of minkes have a more varied diet including many more fish and squid.
Reproduction and Young
Female minke whales ovulate twice a year, in February and August. The gestation period for these animals is 10 to 11 months. A newborn calf weighs about 1,000 pounds and is about 10 feet in length. They stay close to their mother, suckling for four to five months. Young minkes become sexually mature at age six for males and seven for females. Minke whales live an average of 50 years. Transient orca whales may prey on young minke whales.
Human Connection
The International Whaling Commission banned the hunting of all whales in 1986. However, no one is bound by the ban because the commission rules let members reject its rulings. In 2004, Norway planned to harvest 640 whales and is the only country today that still hunts whale for profit. The Institute of Cetacean Research is a nonprofit Japanese research organization that studies the interaction of marine mammals and fish populations. In part, the organization is funded by the sales of minke whale meat harvested for research purposes.
More general information on Kenai Fjords National Park is available at:
Kenai Fjords National Park
We would like to thank the NPS for the above information.
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Backcountry Safaris
P.O. Box 1397 Seward, Alaska USA 99664
1-907-222-1632 or toll-free 1-877-812-2159
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Backcountry Safaris is a member of the following trade and travel organizations:
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Minke Whale Related Links |
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Kenai Fjords Wildlife |
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Kenai Fjords Birds |
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Kenai Fjords Related Links |
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Sea Kayaking Related Links |
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Kenai Fjords Related Links |
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Suggested Reading |
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Kenai Fjords Weather |
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Current Seward, AK Weather |
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Did You Know?
Minke whales received their common name from a Norwegian novice whaling spotter named Meincke, who misidentified the species while at sea. The scientific names for minke whales translate to: "winged whale" (Balaenoptera), "sharp snout" (acutorostrata), and "Buenos Aires" (bonaerensis). |
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