Continuing on with our Alaskan cruise from Seattle, WA up through the "Inside Passage" we made our way to Juneau, the capital Alaska. Here we took a bus tour over to Tongass National Forest and the famous Mendenhall Glacier.
Needless to say, this was quite the experience for us South Florida folk who rarely experience an official "winter" no less seeing huge walls of ice sitting at the edge of a lake. It was one of the "doesn't feel real" moments as we were wearing casual clothing (jeans and a short-sleeve shirt), enjoying full sun, 68 degree weather, and looking across to a massive glacier.
It was something we were happy to have the chance to see, considering how fast this glacier is melting and retreating up into the mountain side. It was explained to us that just a decade before, the glacier was as high as the cliffs seen on the left side of my pictures and completely covered the lower rock face on the right side. Making the cliff that meets the water now only 1/3 of that height.
All the pictures were taken by me with my Fuji S2 Pro using a 70-300mm lens. Enjoy!
Wide view of the Mendenhall Glacier from across the ridge.
View across the lake from ground level.
Wide view of the Mendenhall Glacier.
Closeup of where the glacier meets the lake.
Every so often you could hear cracking sounds coming from across the lake, not too loud, but it did get your attention. We would all look up to see if maybe a piece was breaking off with a big splash like you often see in documentaries, but no such luck.
Left side of the glacier.
Center section of the glacier.
Right side of the glacier.
For scale, there is a small green sign post across the lake on the shoreline. We were told the top of the sign is 7 feet tall by other guests who "were told that by the people in the visitor center". So, give or take a bit, it helps put the height of the glacier in perspective.
Seaplane landing in the inlet bay.
After visitingthe glacier, we set sale for our return trip back to Victoria Canada. Along the way we spotted several shipwrecks on the shoreline as well as dozens of seaplanes coming and going from the coastal towns. Small "bush" planes with large balloon tires or water pontoons are the main mode of transportation around Alaska.
Small shipwreck along the shoreline.
If you missed my previous post from this cruise you can find it here:
Alaska's Icebergs - Cruising the Fjords of Glacier Bay National Park
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