Friday, July 2, 2010

Back to the North (Part II: Valdez Glacier Kayaking)

One afternoon Brian and I took a kayaking trip to Valdez Glacier with Anadyr Adventures. This is a new trip for Anadyr that we were really interested in doing because of an ice cave that broke off of the Valdez Glacier that you can walk up to. Dad actually hiked through it in snow shoes this past winter, so we wanted to see what it looked like in the summer.

Brian in his mismatched rain gear and life vest. They don't get very many guys his size.
Paddling around ice bergs. The lake was created by the glacier and may not look too big, but it's actually 600-1000' deep.
My view of an ice berg up close. Taking a lunch break with a cup of hot cocoa on the rocky shore. This is where we climbed up onto the Valdez Glacier.
The view of Valdez Glacier looking back. During the days of the gold rush, miners hiked over this glacier. It took weeks and many gave up and turned back. I can understand why. On top of the glacier. Behind us is the lake we kayaked through to get up to the face of the glacier.
Our guide Paul and the ice cave from across the lake. You can see the scale of the cave by the docked kayaks in front. Paddling up to the ice cave. Because it was an overcast day, the ice reflected a bright blue. Where we docked.
Exploring the cave. Brian drinks some glacier water.
Cool stuff.

2 comments:

Anthony said...

Thanks for the pictures! I miss Alaska. Sadly, my chances of visiting anytime soon are quite low, and the chances of moving back there are even lower. So I will have to be content with enjoying your pictures!

laura said...

am super jealous. we also used anadyr when we did our kayaking, excellent time!