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Exploring Alaska's Kenai Fjords Guidebook
Exploring Alaska's Kenai Fjords Guidebook

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Trails Illustrated: Prince William Sound-West

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Port Nellie Juan's breathtaking Deep Water Bay is among the most scenic anchorages in the sound.

Deep Water Bay Map Deep Water Bay Map

The deep, ice-gouged 29 mile long glacial enclave of Port Nellie Juan (PNJ) combined with Kings Bay creates the longest fiord in Prince William Sound. Samuel Applegate, who commanded the schooner Nellie Juan is credited with being the first to map the area in 1887. The northern edge of the sprawling Sargent Icefield stands above Port Nellie Juan and Kings Bay, greatly influencing the local weather. Windy conditions in PNJ are usually hard to escape, but sometimes possible at the bottom of Port Nellie Juan, at the fiord's elbow, in a granite basin known as Deep Water Bay.

In summer, Deep Water Bay with its inviting anchorage and stunning sand spit area is one of the western sound's most family friendly boating destinations. The bay's bold W entrance point consists of a massive granite headland etched with fissures and stained by waterfalls. At the bay’s head, an eye-catching white sand spit borders a powerful stream (Contact Creek), with plumes of spray, cascades down a rugged ravine to the outwash mouth, its sandy sediment forming the white gritty spit. Contact Creek drains from multiple lakes, including a silt-laden lake adjoining the terminus of Contact Glacier. The upland terrain attracts hikers willing to bushwhack through alder and glacial till. A pair of alluring tree-crowned islands stand off the bay’s head. At low tidal stages, their sandy waterfronts are ideal for shore trips. Don't expect to be alone, Deep Water Bay is a majestic anchorage and a gathering place for good reason!

Deep Water Bay in Port Nellie Juan
Deep Water Bay

For kayakers, summer breezes usually subside during evening hours, only to begin again by late morning. Beach camping sites in Port Nellie Juan are mostly tide sensitive, especially along low-lying waterfronts in sheltered areas. The drier, less likely to flood, campsites are situated on the Nellie Juan Glacier moraine at the head of Derickson Bay, which can serve as a base for additional exploration of Port Nellie Juan and Kings Bay. Other reliable campsites are marked on the PNJ overview map. To know more about PNJ and the western sound order the guidebook, paperback or Epub, at Amazon, Google Play or at Apple Books.