Inside Passage *Please accept our privacy policy I have read and agree to the terms and conditions in the privacy policy. Your heli glacier hiking tour starts from the magnificent Hotel Alyeska in Girdwood, or the Girdwood Train Depot if coming from Anchorage by the Alaska Railroad. HELICOPTER GLACIER HIKING TOUR. Things To Do » Monthly travel tips, highlights and savings! Or, to learn more about glacier caves , check out this article on Mendenhall Glacier ice caves , part of our Nature & History series. Moraines at the middle, sides, and end of the glacier are the remains of debris picked up by the glacier’s movement. The... Make a plan for Wow. Most our trips require a bush flight to access the backcountry but on this one we shoulder our packs and simply start walking out of town from the historic Kennicott site. Itâs only about 2.5 miles long and is fed by two small accumulation areas. For stunning glacier-front views and somewhat less hiking, you might consider the Private Mendenhall Glacier Paddle & Trek. The 13-mile long floe ends in an iceberg-studded lake 30 minutes outside of Juneau. Visitors can try kayaking near the mouth of a tidewater glacier, take a guided hike across a valley glacier, or drive to Southcentral Alaska’s easily accessible Exit and Worthington glaciers. Get ready for an Alaskan-style glacier hiking adventure in Lake Clark National Park! The Root Glacier is a 2 mile hike from our office in Kennecott. TravelAlaska.com is a registered mark of the State of Alaska. When glaciers crack, it sounds like thunder striking. Visitors to Southeastern Alaska have only one option when it comes to up-close ice-gazing: Mendenhall Glacier. On all of our Alaska glacier hiking trips youâll have the chance to see an amazing variety of glacial features such as crevasses, canyons, waterfalls, blue pools and moulins (holes drilled in the ice by meltwater). ▼, Region: Weâve heard time again from visitors that exploring Matanuska Glacier was the highlight of their Alaska vacation. Spur, provide the backdrop for our glacier explorations. Glaciers are still slowly carving Alaska’s landscape. Day hikes can transport you into dramatic wilderness just outside one of Alaskaâs cities in 15 or 20 minutes. Exit Glacier Road, Kenai Fjords National Park, Alaska. Feel the wind blowing off the glacier and be inspired. Hiking, Biking and Backcountry » Alaska’s glacier hiking and climbing adventures are designed for a variety of interest and experience levels. After an exhilarating hike to the glacierâs edge, youâll put on your glacier hiking ⦠The tidewater glaciers of Prince William Sound and the Kenai Fjords extend down from ⦠Several tour companies provide flightseeing or helicopter glacier landings, while boat cruises in the Inside Passage, Prince William Sound, and Resurrection Bay take you through berg-y waters to the glacierâs face. Matanuska Glacier Adventures provides road access to the glacier, guided tours, self-guided tours and more for both summer and winter explorers. This rarely visited segment of the Alaska Range is the location of two accessible glaciers â the Trimble and the Hayes. The Bagley Icefield, comprised of multiple glaciers, is the largest non-polar icefield in North America. College Glacier is a relatively short, receding, and thinning glacier in the Eastern Alaska Range near the Richardson Highway. Featuring epic flightseeing, glacier landing and guided hiking, this helicopter glacier hiking tour is the trip of a lifetime! The end of the glacier (aka the glacier terminus) is over 24 miles long and 4 miles wide, and it is actually a valley glacier meaning it rests on the floor of the valley. A nuclear-capable strategic bomber, similar to the ones that delivered their atom-splitting payloads over Japan in August 1945. Request your free official State of Alaska vacation planner. A new trip added to our line-and it's a real winner offering both glacier hiking and ridge walks. It was cold. Hiking. This content is for educational purposes only. Backcountry Expeditions Want to Do All of the Crow Pass Trail? From tidewater glaciers, to mountain cirques, to enormous icefields spanning across the horizon, Alaska has more active glaciers than anywhere else in the world. Make a plan for Wow. The mountains surrounding the glaciers and the Lodge, born of volcanic activity as recent as a 1992 eruption of Mt. Bicycling The hike to College Glacier is longer, more strenuous, and more challenging to navigate to than the Gulkana. Request your free official State of Alaska vacation planner. Hiking and backpacking in the Last Frontier. By Water Glacier & Wildlife Cruises, Sea Kayaking, Rafting, Canoeing, and Jet Skiing. You can order special guided tours; there are plenty to choose from. Spencer Glacier, Raven Glacier, McBride Glacier, and Portage Glacier are the most famous among them. Hiking is an inherently dangerous activity, and Alaska is an inherently dangerous place; so no matter what I or anyone else says, you are responsible for your own safety and choices. See photos, videos, trip ideas, suggestions from Alaskans and more. Glaciers are located throughout the Inside Passage, Southcentral Alaska’s coastal waters, and the high mountains of Interior Alaska. MATANUSKA GLACIER PARK: Year-round Glacier Hiking, Glacier Climbing & Guided Glacier Tours. The Malaspina Glacier, a National Natural Landmark, is the world’s largest piedmont glacier (and covers an area larger than Rhode Island). Cool summers and abundant snowfall in winter, especially at higher elevations, transform snow into ice, building layer on layer over hundreds or thousands of years. The highlight of many a trip to Alaska! © 2020 Alaska Travel Industry Association The best time to hike is from May to September when the weather conditions are the most favourable. The scenic two hour drive north east of Anchorage on the Glenn Highway makes it an easy day trip from Anchorage. The Bering Glacier, just outside the park boundaries, is the largest glacier in North America. See photos, videos, trip ideas, suggestions from Alaskans and more. Sitka alder is a successional plant that grows in a mass along beach and stream edges, avalanche chutes and up mountain slopes. Matanuska Glacier is really nice, but you don't gain much if any elevation, so the views are not as spectacular. Alaskaâs glaciers are massive and majestic, bright white and deep blue, icy cold and oh so cool, and truly must be seen to be believed. Hubbard Glacier is the longest tidewater glacier in Alaska, and the Nabesna Glacier is the world’s longest interior valley glacier. With nearly 100,000 glaciers, 5 percent of Alaska is covered by ice year-round. One of very few road-accessible glaciers in the world, itâs simply an incredible [â¦] Wrangell-St. Elias National Park is home to the country’s largest glacial system. Utilizing the Alaska Railroad or helicopter flights provides backcountry access off the road system. One quarter of Alaska’s glaciers - more than 4.5 million acres - can be found within Alaska’s national parks. Juneau Compressed by layers of ice and snow, glaciers’ gorgeous blue ice is the densest ice of all. Click on the individual trip below for more details, photos, and reservation information. If youâre an ambitious hiker, you can make a day out of it and follow the switchbacks up to Harding Icefield.This 500-square-mile frozen mass feeds almost three dozen glaciers, including Exit. Younger, less compressed white ice contains many tiny air bubbles. If you would like to compare where services are located, you can Add to My Alaska to compile a list and see all the points on the same map. learn technical ice-climbing skills during a multi-day climbing workshop or take an overnight camping trip on a slow-moving glacier. A Custom Glacier Experience PRIVATE MATANUSKA GLACIER HIKE PRICE FROM $150/PERSON CHART YOUR OWN PATH NOVA welcomes the opportunity to create a custom, private or group glacier hiking adventure with our experienced glacier guides. You can raft or kayak through a sea of ice to the face of a tidewater glacier, fly over mountain cirques, take an afternoon helicopter tour and land on a glacier or test your footing across icewater rivers along a glacial moraine. No Experience Necessary. Alaska has many accessible glaciers across the state that allow visitors to experience a frozen wonderland in the height of summer, and professionally guided glacier tours let you have safe, firsthand encounters with Alaska’s magnificent glaciers. In front of me, a broken and weathered engine of a TB-29 Superfortress. We pioneered glacier guiding on the Kenai Peninsula and have the most experience to safely guide our clients onto the glaciers of Kenai Fjords National Park and the Chugach National Forest. Several tour companies provide flightseeing or helicopter glacier landings, while boat cruises in the Inside Passage, Prince William Sound, and Resurrection Bay take you through berg-y waters to the glacier’s face. Official State of Alaska Vacation and Travel Information. Whether you’re driving along on of Alaska’s Scenic Byways, on a cruise, flightseeing, or hiking, it’s easy to see Alaska’s glaciers. © 2020 Alaska Travel Industry Association But I'm now convinced that glacier trekking is like bungy jumping: it doesn't matter how many times you do it â it's still guaranteed to be amazing. Exit Glacier is one of the few glaciers in Alaska that you can practically get within armâs length of. Alaska glacier cruises, hiking and flightseeing offer all visitors one of the 49th stateâs most iconic traveler experiences. If you would like to compare where services are located, you can Add to My Alaska to compile a list and see all the points on the same map. Perhaps the most intimate way to experience the awesome scale of Alaska's glaciers is on the water. The Matanuska Glacier, the massive valley glacier just 100 miles north of Anchorage, Alaska, has easily accessible shallow ice cliffs suitable for introductory ice climbing. Are you interested in glacier hiking in Alaska? The Castner Glacier is an easily accessible glacier toe in the Delta Mountains of the Alaska Range. To the south of the Lodge lie the Tordrillo Mountains. If youâre thinking of doing the entire Crow Pass trail, the best source of information is the staff at the Eagle River Nature Center, which sits at the far (finishing) end of the 24-mile trail. Take your itinerary with you using our My Alaska Trip feature and the TravelAlaska app. Guided Camping & Hiking We couldnât wait to go glacier hiking in Anchorage! And Kennicott Glacier Lodge is great for self-guided hikes. By clicking OK and using this website, you are agreeing to our privacy policy regarding the use of cookies. The 4,000-acre wildlife refuge provides protected habitat for terrestrial and aquatic life Mendenhall Wetlands State Game Refuge is where land and and sea meet and intermingle in saltwater wetlands. It is also cheaper, shorter and less strenuous than the Exit Glacier hike. This website uses cookies to analyze traffic and customize content on this site. Glacier Hiking & Climbing Many of them are surprisingly accessible by land, air, or water. Official State of Alaska Vacation and Travel Information. One of the most popular glaciers in Alaska, Mendenhall sits just 12 miles outside of Juneau.The West Glacier Trail, a roughly four-mile jaunt, is the easiest way to get there. These tiny creatures, related to earthworms, thrive at 32 degrees F (0 C). The pressure of the glacier itself, moving down mountains and valleys, scrapes down to bedrock. I haven't done the glacier hike from Girdwood, but I think that involves a helicopter ride. Iceworms tend to hide during sunny days when the surface of the glacier warms, but they are perfectly at home below the glaciers’ surface where the temperature remains just below freezing. Kennicott / McCarthy EXPLORE THE SCENIC DENALI HIGHWAY IN A 4 DOOR JEEP WRANGLER! With mountain and glacier vistas, wildflowers galore, wildlife encounters, and the majesty and mystery which makes this destination truly unique, hiking in Alaska is more exciting â we guarantee it! ▼. Click here to find businesses that can help you explore Alaska's glaciers. Alaskaâs glacier hiking and climbing adventures are designed for a variety of interest and experience levels. Be prepared to tangle with the alder. The best lodges for guided hiking: Kenai Backcountry Lodge, where you'll hike through the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge; Kenai Riverside Lodge, which offers hikes in Chugach National Forest; Camp Denali / North Face Lodge in the heart of Denali. Today, most Alaska glaciers are retreating, but some occasionally surge forward when more meltwater reduces friction at the glacier’s base. Luckily, we have compiled a list of some of the best glacier tours and have categorized each experience by sea, air, or land. Join us for a fun filled day exploring the Matanuska Glacier. "The largest glacier accessible by car in Alaska". Take your itinerary with you using our My Alaska Trip feature and the TravelAlaska app. However, itâs not the best maintained trail, so going with a guide could save you from getting lost (bonus: theyâll have all the tools youâll need to hike safely on the glacier and know where the best ice caves are). Access to the College Glacier begins at the same location as the Gulkana Glacier Hike. *Please accept our privacy policy I have read and agree to the terms and conditions in the privacy policy. The power of Alaska’s glaciers moves mountains, carves rivers, and stirs the imagination. Photo by Thomas James Caldwell licensed under CC BY-ND 2.0 Head to Harding Icefield for views of surrounding peaks and fjords. Though there are numerous less known ones as well. And, if you’re lucky, you may even see an ice worm! The picturesque path to the glacier is a mixture of back-country and on-trail trekking and the view from the top of the 1400ft of elevation that we gain while traveling over 1.6 ⦠From U-shaped river valleys to huge boulders (called glacial erratics) randomly scattered along otherwise flat plateaus, glaciers have left their mark across the state. ▼, Community: Much of the remaining landscape shows evidence of a glacier’s passing. I reached out and touched the metal. SAVE $30 PER PERSON. This website uses cookies to analyze traffic and customize content on this site. For those who want to spend more time experiencing Alaska's glaciers and are feeling more adventurous you can you can take a one-day trip to an icefield, explore ice caves, learn technical ice-climbing skills during a multi-day climbing workshop or take an overnight camping trip on a slow-moving glacier. Hiking the Bomber Glacier, Alaska Garland | Last Updated: May 30, 2020 Bomber Glacier. Start your day in Anchorage or Girdwood and join one of glacier day tours to get off the beaten path on a small group adventure, led by friendly and knowledgeable guides. This area of Alaska gets little snow making it a great early season hiking destination. Glaciers may be big, but they are accessible. Wilderness Hiking There are no maintained trails in park wilderness, but beaches, recently deglaciated areas, and alpine meadows offer excellent hiking. 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