Glaciers and Icebergs
Iceberg from the Columbia Glacier in Prince William Sound near Glacier Island.
Large rocks insulate the ice beneath them as the bare ice around them melts down. Eventually, they slide off. Black Rapids Glacier - Alaska Range.
There were quite a few large streams to cross on the Black Rapids Glacier this year with absolutely no englacial drainage to help calm the water at the surface. At least they are pretty to look at. The channel here was quite a bit deeper and wider than it looked and this little island of ice with the precariously balanced boulder proved to be a useful crossing point.
Water flows from the surface of the Black Rapids Glacier into a channel along a medial moraine. A few meters upstream a large moulin was draining the bulk of the water that had originally carved this passage that was a little bit over my head.
Mountains, glaciers, and moraines
Evening light hitting peaks in the Alaska Range. Black Rapids Glacier
Mountains covered in ice and a dusting of fresh snow in the Trinity Basin, high up in the Alaska Range.
Supraglacial stream on the Castner Glacier. It was nearly 80 degrees even out on the ice. I filled up my water bottles here (3 liters worth) before heading out the rocky moraine. I ran out of water within just a couple hours.
And many, many icebergs. Prince William Sound - Alaska.
On the Canwell Glacier where the edge of the southern moraine meets exposed ice. Channels typically form next to moraines like this and since this is very near the toe of the glacier it's had a long time to form this deep channel.
In the short summer, water scours the glacier surface creating a ripple-like surface on the ice going down-glacier. At the end of the season, when the first major snow falls the rough surface becomes once again smooth. This was taken at the end of the day when I could really see the shadows from those ripples. It kind of looks like little waves on the glacier.
Supraglacial stream carving its way throught the snow pack on the Black Rapids Glacier in the Alaska Range.
The higher you go on the Harding Icefield Trail, the better the views seem to get. It's a long way down to the crevassed Exit Glacier. Kenai Fjords National Park.
Flying over the Loket tributary to the Black Rapids Glacier in the Alaska Range in the Turbine Otter. This was the location of our campsite for a week in April 2013. It was quite a bit colder and windier than the previous year - like 60mph winds at -20 degrees F cold.
A small moraine on the Black Rapids Glacier in the Alaska Range.
A stream on the edge of the southern lateral moraine on the Canwell Glacier in the Eastern Alaska Range.
Along the Harding Icefield Trail in Kenai Fjords National Park
Remnants of an ice cave on the Castner Glacier. Now it's just a giant arch.
Supraglacial stream on the Canwell Glacier. We had a beautiful hike in, then it started raining. When we woke up there was a dusting of snow on the tent and the air was crisp.
Columbia Glacier from Columbia Bay (Prince William Sound) in the Chugach Mountains.
A patch of blue opens up over the Loket Tributary to the Black Rapids Glacier on a pretty dreary day.
Little pieces break away
Waterfall into a channel on the Canwell Glacier in the Alaska Range.
Water running on the surface of the Black Rapids Glacier glistens in the evening light shortly before sunset.
Northwestern Glacier, a tidewater glacier near Seward, Alaska. Kenai Fjords National Park.
Prince William Sound near Valdez
I was out on the Loket Tributary to the Black Rapids Glacier in the Alaska Range on September 3, 2014. About 6 inches to a foot of fresh snow helped make for some stunning contrast against the rock and sky. Unfortunately, It won't be safe to return until the snow is solid enough to support body weight over crevasses and moulins. This was the nicest day I've had out there this year! Nikon D7000 | Sigma 17-50mm f/2.8 EX lens | f/11.0 | shutter speeds 1/160 - 1/320 (aperture priority mode) | Exposure Bias -1/3 EV | ISO 200
The Castner Glacier in the Eastern Alaska Range. Looking up the northern branch of the Glacier approximately 6 miles up from the tow.
