If there is a word for a day in Alaska travel this week, it's "glacier."
In case you missed the president of the United States rolling through Southcentral Alaska, it was all about the glaciers. First, there was the big shindig called "GLACIER" at the Dena'ina Center on Monday. Then it was off to Seward on Tuesday to walk to Exit Glacier and cruise with Major Marine Tours to see some glaciers in Resurrection Bay.
Although the glaciers are retreating, you still can see them all around Alaska. Whether you want an adventure this fall or you're planning for next summer, here are a few tips for getting up on the ice around the state.
First, you can walk right up to the same glacier that President Obama saw in Seward: Exit Glacier. Right before you get to Seward, take a right turn at Exit Glacier Road and follow the signs.
You also can climb up on Matanuska Glacier, about 100 miles northwest of Anchorage. To get a better experience, consider going with a guide, such as MICA Guides, which offer a selection of glacier hikes and ice climbing adventures.
If you're headed to Valdez, you can pull over at the rest stop by Worthington Glacier and hike up to the ice. I've done it with the kids. It's fun!
For a more dramatic experience, consider a glacier flight with a landing. You can go to Talkeetna and fly with Talkeetna Air Taxi, with K2 or with Sheldon Air Service. The ski planes take off from Talkeetna Airport and land on the Ruth Glacier. But if they cannot get into the Ruth Amphitheater, there are several other glaciers on the mountain, including Pica Glacier. Each of the flying services offers overboots to slip over your shoes for walking around in the snow.
Closer to home, you can take a helicopter flight from Knik River Lodge up to the Knik Glacier. It's just five minutes away by air. The lodge is just 54 miles from Anchorage at the end of Knik River Road.
Or, drive 54 miles south along Turnagain Arm and sail on Portage Lake. The Ptarmigan offers frequent sailings each day close to the face of Portage Glacier.
Once you've gone that far, though, you may want to see all 26 glaciers in College Fjord. That's the signature tour for Phillips Cruises and Tours, leaving from Whittier. The Klondike Express sails each day on a 125-mile roundtrip cruise to see all 26 of the glaciers.
Further down the highway in Seward, you can sail with Major Marine Tours or Kenai Fjords Tours and see the glaciers in Kenai Fjords National Park. I like the "national park cruise" which includes a visit to Aialik Bay. On the way, though, you will sail past the giant Bear Glacier that President Obama was admiring earlier this week. And there are all sorts of critters to see along the way: otters, puffins, seals, sea lions, eagles and whales.
Down in Homer, there is a great big glacier across Kachemak Bay: Grewingk Glacier. Take Mako's Water Taxi from the Homer Spit over to the trail head. You can make arrangements for them to pick you up in Halibut Cove after you take a few hours to hike in to see the glacier. It's an easy walk and a natural spot to take a break for lunch. Then, hike back over the hill to the pickup spot in Halibut Cove.
Another easily accessible glacier is the Root Glacier near McCarthy. The glacier flows right past the ruins of the Kennicott Mine and the Kennicott Glacier Lodge. We hiked with St. Elias Alpine Guides on a half-day trek. It's about two miles up to the ice, where you put on the crampons and start hiking on the glacier. Kennicott Wilderness Guides and Wild Alpine also offer day hikes and ice climbing classes. Hey -- if I can climb an ice wall, you can, too! For a real adventure, book an overnight trip further back in the Wrangell-St. Elias National Park where you and your guides can set up camp and climb for a couple of days.
In Valdez, there are a couple of options to get up close to the ice. You can sail with Stan Stephens Cruises to either Columbia Glacier or Mears Glacier. Columbia Glacier is closer, but the Mears Glacier trip is more of an adventure. Closer to town, you can catch a water taxi with Pangaea Adventures to Shoup Glacier and kayak around the icebergs. It's a fun trip, and lunch is included.
Speaking of paddling around in the ice, you can catch the Alaska Railroad in Portage (or Anchorage) and ride to the Spencer Glacier whistlestop. There is a package offered with Chugach Adventures that includes a float trip from near the face of Spencer Glacier down the Placer River. There's plenty of time to paddle around between the icebergs and get some beautiful photos of Spencer Glacier.
Down in Juneau, there's a drive-up glacier close to town. Mendenhall Glacier is hard to miss as you're coming in for a landing on Alaska Airlines. There are trails that lead right up to a big waterfall close to the face of the glacier. There are float trips on the Mendenhall River that start near the face among the icebergs. And of course there are helicopter trips on TEMSCO Air that land on the glacier.
Era Helicopters also has a base in Juneau and they fly travelers to the Taku Glacier, which is south of town. You also can fly with Wings Airways from the cruise ship dock over five different glaciers to the Taku Glacier Lodge for a barbecue. It's right across the Taku River from the glacier.
Sixty miles from Juneau is the community of Gustavus. It's the hub for Glacier Bay National Park. There are many ways to explore the park, including the big cruise ships which cruise around the bay. But I like the boat tour that leaves from the Glacier Bay Lodge each morning. It's an all-day tour and goes almost to the Canadian border in a fast catamaran. When we sailed, we saw both brown and black bears, whales, sea lions, eagles and lots of big glaciers.
Some of the best glacier flightseeing that I've done has been with Alaska Airlines on flights between Anchorage and Juneau. You fly past College Fjord and Columbia Glacier, past the Malaspina Glacier, the Hubbard Glacier and over Glacier Bay. Ask for a window seat.