Inflatable skiff occupants escape glacier calving, shooters

Occupants of an inflatable skiff escaped serious injury or more likely, death, by just minutes on Sunday morning.

While on a morning excursion to LeConte Glacier, a customer with Whale Song Cruises said they thought they saw a pod of killer whales at the face of the glacier. The whales it turned out were passengers aboard an inflatable skiff navigating within a few yards of the glacier face explained skipper Ron Loesch.

After nearly 20 minutes with only a couple of minor calving incidents, Loesch said a continuous calving event near the north edge of the face gave way to 100-foot tall pillars...