Cross Sound is the critical northern entrance to the Pacific Northwest's Inside Passage. The foreground in this photo is the 'mainland' and the all the land beyond are islands, big and small, in the 'Alexander Archipelago'. To the right is the open Pacific Ocean, to the left through the narrow strait pass cruise ships, barges, freighters, tankers and the millions of fish commuting from the Gulf of Alaska to the “Inside Waters”. The foreground is Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve. Most of the land on the islands is part of the Tongass National Forest. Photographer: Bill Eichenlaub