Glacier Trek, Juneau, AK, August 2013
I was lucky enough to go on a glacial adventure this weekend with the help of NorthStar Trekking!
Going underneath the Mendenhall Glacier is one thing, but putting on a pair of crampons and checking out all the features on top of it is awesome… as is scaling the face of a frozen slab of ice. In all, the exploring lasted about three hours. Throw in the helicopter rides and perfect weather and well, needless to say, it was a pretty epic afternoon.
Below are just a sampling of the nearly 500 photos I snapped. I did my best to capture the full breadth of the experience, but I would highly recommend making your own way onto the Mendenhall if you can, even if you’re from Juneau and you see it all the time. There’s nothing like it!
Mt. Bradley (aka Jumbo), Juneau, AK, July 2013
I would say that there’s not much better than hiking up a mountain on a sunny and warm Juneau day, but… Juneau’s pretty awesome that way. No matter what you do on a sunny and warm Juneau day however, you can never go wrong by making your way to the top of a mountain!
Mt. Bradley, otherwise known as Mt. Jumbo, is a 3,337 foot peak on Douglas Island, offering great views of downtown Juneau, the backside of Douglas, the airport area, and pretty much everywhere else.
The trail is about three and a half miles long and up, up, UP. It’s well worth the effort though…
Mendenhall Glacier Cave, Juneau, AK, June 2013
This was my third hike to the glacier cave at Mendenhall Glacier that has been the “go to” cave for the past few years. I went in July 2011 and October 2011 – for moving at glacial speeds, it’s amazing how much has changed in between visits!
Much more of the face has calved off and melted over these two short years and the entrance to the cave itself has receded at least 100 feet. It actually looks a bit more stable now, as the previous ice outcropping that was at the entrance before was relatively thin looking. Inside the cave is just as amazing – the bluest of blues and the sound of water rushing under the glacier. If you go, be safe and bring rain gear!
Enjoy the photos.
The Getaway, Hawaii, HI, May 2013
This year’s big summer vacation was to Hawaii (the Big Island). Can’t say enough good things about the place… relaxing, great food, so much to do. It’s incredible. The photos below don’t do it justice, but I tried to include a little something different than the usual Hawaiian vacation photos.
Two highlights: driving 14,000′ above sea level to the top of Mauna Kea and hiking out to the southernmost point in the United States (coming within a year to the day of visiting the northernmost point in the United States!).
Hope you enjoy the photos!