Ice Castle Views

Zoey pressed her nose against the cold ferry window, watching enormous chunks of ice drift past like floating castles. The ferry's engine hummed as they entered Glacier Bay, where towering walls of blue-white ice met dark water.

"Look at that!" she whispered to herself, pointing at a group of seals lounging on a nearby ice floe.

Her mom appeared beside her, camera ready. "Pretty amazing, isn't it? The glaciers have been here for thousands of years."

Zoey counted at least twelve seals sprawled across the ice. They looked peaceful, but something seemed off. She watched them more closely.

"Mom, why aren't they diving for fish? Seals love to hunt."

Her mom shrugged. "Maybe they're just resting."

But Zoey noticed how thin the seals looked compared to the pictures in her nature books. Their usual plump bellies seemed smaller, and they barely moved.

The ferry announcer's voice crackled over the speakers: "Fishing boats report unusually low fish populations this season in Glacier Bay waters."

The Captain's Shrug

Zoey watched the seals through binoculars her mom had handed her. Their ribs showed through thin fur.

"Something's really wrong," she whispered.

A gruff voice behind them made her turn. A fishing boat captain in a torn jacket stood talking to another passenger.

"Been out here thirty years," he said, shaking his gray beard. "Never seen the fish disappear like this. The bay's practically empty."

"What about the seals?" Zoey asked, stepping closer.

The captain glanced at her with tired brown eyes. "Seals? They'll figure it out. Always do."

"But they look hungry!"

He shrugged. "Not my problem, kid. I've got bills to pay."

Zoey felt heat rise in her cheeks. "You fish here every day and don't care about the animals?"

The captain walked away without answering.

Her mom put a gentle hand on her shoulder. "Zoey, adults sometimes—"

"Someone should help them," Zoey interrupted, still watching the motionless seals on their ice floe.