Tracy Arm is a

fjord In physical geography, a fjord (also spelled fiord in New Zealand English; ) is a long, narrow sea inlet with steep sides or cliffs, created by a glacier. Fjords exist on the coasts of Antarctica, the Arctic, and surrounding landmasses of the n ...

in the U.S. state of

Alaska Alaska ( ) is a non-contiguous U.S. state on the northwest extremity of North America. Part of the Western United States region, it is one of the two non-contiguous U.S. states, alongside Hawaii. Alaska is also considered to be the north ...

near

Juneau Juneau ( ; ), officially the City and Borough of Juneau, is the capital of the U.S. state of Alaska, located along the Gastineau Channel and the Alaskan panhandle. Juneau was named the capital of Alaska in 1906, when the government of wha ...

(outlet at 57° 46' 40" N 133° 37' 0" W). It is named after

Secretary of the Navy The Secretary of the Navy (SECNAV) is a statutory officer () and the head (chief executive officer) of the Department of the Navy, a military department within the United States Department of Defense. On March 25, 2025, John Phelan was confirm ...

Benjamin Franklin Tracy Benjamin Franklin Tracy (April 26, 1830August 6, 1915) was a United States political figure who served as Secretary of the Navy from 1889 through 1893, during the administration of U.S. President Benjamin Harrison. Biography He was born in the h ...

(1889-93). It is located about south of

and north of

Petersburg, Alaska Petersburg is a census-designated place (CDP) in and essentially the borough seat of Petersburg Borough, Alaska, Petersburg Borough, Alaska, United States. The population was 3,043 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, up from 2,948 in ...

, off of Holkham Bay and adjacent to

Stephens Passage Stephens Passage is a channel in the Alexander Archipelago in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of Alaska. It runs between Admiralty Island to the west and the Alaska mainland and Douglas Island to the east, and is about 170 km (10 ...

within the

Tongass National Forest The Tongass National Forest () in Southeast Alaska is the largest U.S. National Forest at , an expanse larger than 10 U.S. states and 75 U.N. member nations. Most of its area is temperate rain forest and is remote enough to be home to many s ...

. Tracy Arm is the heart of the Tracy Arm-Fords Terror Wilderness, designated by the

United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature, legislative branch of the federal government of the United States. It is a Bicameralism, bicameral legislature, including a Lower house, lower body, the United States House of Representatives, ...

in 1990 Tracy Arm-Fords Terror Wilderness contains and consists of two deep and narrow fjords: Tracy Arm and Endicott Arm. Both fjords are over long and one-fifth of their area is covered in ice. During the summer, the fjords have considerable floating ice ranging from hand-sized to pieces as large as a three-story building. During the most recent glaciated period, both fjords were filled with active glaciers.

Access

The most common access is by boat using

and entering Holkham Bay and Tracy and Endicott Arms. Float planes from Juneau and Petersburg are also used as a means of access. Large tour vessels and smaller commercial cruise boats frequently use Tracy Arm as a tour destination or as a stop along their normal tour routes.

Sawyer Glacier

The twin Sawyer Glaciers, North Sawyer and South Sawyer, are located at the end of Tracy Arm. The wildlife in the area includes black and brown

bear Bears are carnivoran mammals of the family (biology), family Ursidae (). They are classified as caniforms, or doglike carnivorans. Although only eight species of bears are extant, they are widespread, appearing in a wide variety of habitats ...

deer A deer (: deer) or true deer is a hoofed ruminant ungulate of the family Cervidae (informally the deer family). Cervidae is divided into subfamilies Cervinae (which includes, among others, muntjac, elk (wapiti), red deer, and fallow deer) ...

wolves The wolf (''Canis lupus''; : wolves), also known as the grey wolf or gray wolf, is a canine native to Eurasia and North America. More than thirty subspecies of ''Canis lupus'' have been recognized, including the dog and dingo, though gr ...

harbor seal The harbor (or harbour) seal (''Phoca vitulina''), also known as the common seal, is a true seal found along temperate and Arctic marine coastlines of the Northern Hemisphere. The most widely distributed species of pinniped (walruses, eared sea ...

s, and a variety of

birds Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class (biology), class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the Oviparity, laying of Eggshell, hard-shelled eggs, a high Metabolism, metabolic rate, a fou ...

, such as

Arctic terns The Arctic tern (''Sterna paradisaea'') is a tern in the family Laridae. This bird has a circumpolar breeding distribution covering the Arctic and sub-Arctic regions of Europe (as far south as Brittany), Asia, and North America (as far south ...

and

pigeon guillemot The pigeon guillemot (''Cepphus columba'') () is a species of bird in the auk family, Alcidae. One of three species in the genus ''Cepphus'', it is most closely related to the spectacled guillemot. There are five subspecies of the pigeon guille ...

s. The

mountain goat The mountain goat (''Oreamnos americanus''), also known as the Rocky Mountain goat, is a cloven-footed mammal that is endemic to the remote and rugged mountainous areas of western North America. A subalpine to truly alpine species, it is a s ...

s, which are usually found in the higher elevation areas, have been seen near the base of Sawyer Glacier. Sawyer glacier tracy arm 2021

Deepwater Emergence

The deep passageways and thin continental shelf leads to unique connections between offshore and inshore waters. The colder water temperature, nutrient-rich upwelling, and strong currents allow for many species that live in deeper water to survive in the shallower waters. The corals in this area, such as '' Primnoa pacifica'', have contributed to the location being labeled as Habitat Areas of Particular Concern. ''P. pacifica'' is typically a deep water coral normally found between and ; however, in the Tracy Arm it is found between and , offering a unique opportunity for research.

References

{{Authority control Bodies of water of Hoonah–Angoon Census Area, Alaska Bodies of water of Juneau, Alaska Fjords of Alaska Landforms of Hoonah–Angoon Census Area, Alaska Landforms of Juneau, Alaska Glaciers of Alaska Glaciers of Hoonah–Angoon Census Area, Alaska Glaciers of Juneau, Alaska Protected areas of Hoonah–Angoon Census Area, Alaska Protected areas of Juneau, Alaska Tourist attractions in Juneau, Alaska Wilderness areas of the Tongass National Forest Glaciers of Unorganized Borough, Alaska