GLACIAL SPACE

A particularly cool experience aboard Oceania Cruises' Riviera, navigating from Whittier, Alaska, to Vancouver in British Columbia.

- By Sue Wallace

It's no mean feat, holding this hefty chunk of frosty ice.

The mini-iceberg in my grasp, recently 'fished' from the white-crested waves of the crystal blue sea below Alaska's Hubbard Glacier, proves a solid weight for a hands-on iceberg experience.

We have spent the afternoon mesmerised by what's known as the Galloping Glacier as it advances more than two metres daily in Disappointment Bay, southeastern Alaska.

The calving action is heralded by a rumbling roar as large pieces of ice – often the size of a three-storey building – tumble into the water, sending waves every which way.

We aren't the only ones witnessing this calving phenomenon. Rowdy Steller sea lions lounge on the rocks nearby, watching us watching them from our tour boat, the Wilderness Express.

The Hubbard Glacier that creeps down the shoulder of Mount Walsh is the longest tidewater glacier in North America. Alaska is home to more than 100,000 awesome glaciers big and small.

It's just one of the many exciting expeditions available on the nine-day Explorer's Alaska adventure aboard Oceania Cruises' beautiful, refreshed Riviera cruising from Whittier to Vancouver in British Columbia.