Ice Gardens in Glacier Bay National Park

Stranded Berg
  My last week in Alaska was a big one, including hunting bears, northern lights, and a trip into Glacier Bay National Park. The schedule that I came up with for the week was a little rigorous, taking us to six glaciers over the course of two days to maximize our chance of seeing calving and for different glacier activities. We first woke up at the beautiful Margerie Glacier and the almost all black face of the Grand Pacific Glacier. Little chunks were falling off but the real calving show came from the huge Johns Hopkins Glacier were we went next.

Walking Amongst the Ice
Fun with the Polar Plunge
Dan exploring Lamplugh Glacier
  After the amazing calving experience at Johns Hopkins we headed off to Lamplugh Glacier for some good ol' fashioned polar plunge fun into the icy waters. Feeling alive and refreshed from the sub 40 degree water we filled up on lunch and then headed out for hikes, shorewalks, kayaks, and skiff tours around the glacier.
Johns Hopkins in all of its glory
Incredible Ice Sculptures at McBride Glacier
   I always try to have different activities to choose from for the guests as well as different levels of difficulty. Lamplugh glacier provides the entire gamut, from a very difficult ridge hike taking you high above the glacier, to a simpler shorewalk right next to the glacier, or even an easy kayak near the face of the glacier. Each activity gives you a very different perspective of the massive frozen river of ice.

Lamplugh Glacier, up close


Hidden Room in the Ice
Ice waiting for high tide

  After an amazing day of glaciers we booked it across the bay about 50 miles to the other end where McBride and Riggs glaciers await more activities. I had been wanting to make it to the McBride ice garden ever since seeing a screen saver on my coworkers computer from that place.
Margerie Glacier
Recent Calvings
  The glacier itself has receded back out of view, but there must be an incredible amount of calving activity still because huge chunks of ice flow down the out wash river and then get stuck on the shore at low tide. The ice garden effect that it creates makes it seem like you are walking through an ice sculpture garden that would have taken years to create. I had to be very careful taking pictures because of the constant rain but I managed to safely snap a few before having to pack away my camera. It was amazing to see so many different glacial landscapes over the course of our two days in the national park. I felt like I was going out with a bang.







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