Editor’s note: it gives me great pleasure to introduce you all to Mike. One of the first bloggers I met when I began writing, Mike’s love for the outdoors and his home of Alaska offers a unique perspective that I’m thrilled he is sharing with all of us. Here, he talks about some ways to experience glaciers, with links to some of his articles you should be sure to click on. As he is hopefully going to write regularly for us, you will be able to read more of his pieces by clicking here to visit his index page.
Glaciers have tantalized my love of nature ever since I was a kid growing up in the New Jersey suburbs of New York’s concrete jungle. Massive icewalls and mountains towering above might as well have been in a fantasy novel for how accessible they were. Even so, I found myself drawn to nature’s blue ice; I read national geographic magazines and watched nature documentaries on PBS thinking that I might one day get to see a glacier in person.
Since moving to Alaska in 2017 I’ve visited more glaciers than I can count and seen many more that I can’t name. I’ve written about many of these glacier adventures and am excited to share some of my favorites as I introduce myself to The Royal Tour!
Glaciers have funny names. Many of them are named after an indigineous name or word; other glaciers are named for modern people and things. Here’s a fun list of glaciers in a rough chronological order of when I visited them: Exit Glacier, Byron Glacier, Portage Glacier, Knik Glacier, Skookum Glacier, Ailik Glacier, Grewingk Glacier, Northwestern Glacier, Holgate Glacier, Matanuska Glacier, Surprise Glacier, Beloit Glacier, Bomber Glacier, Snowbird Glacier, Pennyroyal Glacier, Spencer Glacier, Gulkana Glacier and Castner Glacier. Most of these glaciers are accessible via the road; a few require a quick boat ride from Seward, Homer, or Whittier.
Northwestern Glacier is my favorite spot in Kenai Fjords National Park, narrowly beating the Harding Ice Field trail to steal first. Northwestern Fjord is home to multiple glaciers and beautiful sights, but perhaps the most exciting part for me was all the seals! Harbor seals haul out onto the ice that has calved off these glaciers. The marine mammals have become accustomed to the daily tour boats and know that our vessels mean them no harm, so they often remain on the ice to avoid predatory orcas. Humpback, orcas, grey, and fin whales all frequent these waters, too, making it a paradise for adventurous tourists in Seward, Alaska.
Grewingk Glacier sits in Kachemak Bay State Park and is accessible via water taxi from Homer, Alaska. Grewingk Lake has a handful of campsites with bear-bins, and other open camping spots around it. There are usually icebergs floating in in the glacial waters and you can find signs of black bears. The last time I visited, we counted well over a hundred signs of bear scat and saw a half dozen bears. There are two main trails that go around the lake, one on the south side that goes up to a ridgeline with a view. The other trail curves around the west end of the lake and goes over a hand tram leading to the blue ice trail with the closest access to Grewingk Glacier. I’ve camped at Grewingk Lake on a handful of occasions, but still have it on my bucket list to ice skate here! I’ve seen photos of friends nordic ice skating around icebergs frozen between vast stretches of smooth ice.
Byron Glacier is one of the closest and easiest glaciers to access from Anchorage, Alaska. A short drive along the Seward Highway down the Turnagain Arm will reveal beautiful mountains, a chance to see beluga whales and the bore tide, and culminate with a short drive down Portage Glacier Road. Park near the visitor center and look right into the valley and you’ll see the hanging Byron Glacier near the mountain tops. Icefall over the years and glacial remnants have formed ice caves in the valley floor; these caves are spectacularly alluring but hold hidden dangers so I recommend watching the beauty from afar since Byron Glacier ice caves have claimed a few lives over the last decade.
Speaking of Portage Glacier, a majestic ice wall once covered most of Portage Lake and many locals remember being able to see the glacier from the parking lot. Now, visitors cross a few miles of lake before you can see the glacier. In the winter, the lake often freezes and locals ski, walk, or bike across to catch a glimpse of the blue ice. Beware that Portage Glacier calving can be very dangerous, especially when visitors get too close. There is a large rock outcropping that you can safely view the glacier from if you manage to get that far; otherwise Portage Pass from the Whittier, Alaska side is a wonderful day hike that gives great glacier views!
Perhaps the most spectacular glacier adventures that I’ve had to date are biking and skiing out to Knik and Skookum Glaciers. Depending on the conditions, biking or nordic skiing might be the most efficient human powered transport to these beauties. But each is also accessible via snow machine or ATV depending on the season.
Knik Glacier sports a beautiful iceberg filled lake in front of it and has a massive icewall that goes on forever. The mountains surrounding you are off in the distance, giving you a big sky feel that makes this river valley my favorite place to photograph the aurora borealis near Anchorage!
Skookum glacier is around the corner from Byron and Portage Glaciers and tucked into a narrow valley that threatens avalanches. The trek to Skookum is quite scenic as you traverse a frozen meadow in Chugach National Forest. Skookum’s ice wall is less vibrantly blue but creates a dynamic snowscape nonetheless.
I hope you enjoyed this photo tour through some of my favorite glaciers in Alaska. Comment below and let me know which glacier you would like to see.
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