Bioluminescence in the Night

Most people have probably heard of bioluminescence, but not a lot of people have been lucky enough to see it with their own eyes. As a crew member I am typically very tired and sleep on the boat is the best sleep there is, which has caused me to apparently miss out on some really neat experiences our guests have had with bioluminescence. More than once I've been serving breakfast and heard the most amazing stories about how they could see the rain hitting the water the night before, glowing ripples lighting up the cove we've spent the night tucked into. Captain Mortenson has told me countless stories of glowing seas he's seen, but I was really missing out until one extra quiet night two summers ago.

  We were anchored out somewhere between Sitka and Juneau, I was asleep on the back deck, the Captain in the wheelhouse, and our adventurous guests were strewn about the boat, some sleeping in bunks and the guys mostly in hammocks on the deck with us, the weather perfect for sleeping outside. I was awoken first by the loud breathing of a sea lion, swimming close to the boat and snorting its way through the water. When I rolled over to check it out, if I hadn't already been on the deck I probably would have hit it, I was in no way prepared for the intensity of what I could see illuminated in the water around us. Three sea lions were hunting a school of fish, the fish were trying to shelter under the boat, and I could see it all because the water was being lit up in the brightest blue you could possibly imagine with every motion made by every thing.

 It was insane. It was amazing.

Quickly I woke the Captain, and whispered to the guests to wake up and be quiet so they could watch the show as well. Everyone ended up out on the deck together, wrapped in blankets and silently watching in awe as the show went on and on and on, the sea lions dancing and twisting and the fish darting into deeper water then back up again, it was ALL lit up. Eventually they moved on, we went to sleep again, and even though I've only seen it once, the memory of how the water lit up like the sky will stick with me forever. Well, at least until the next time, and there will be a next time.