Mendenhall Glacier - Juneau, AK, USA
N 58° 25.062 W 134° 32.774
8V E 526508 N 6475304
Mendenhall Glacier, near Juneau, Alaska, is one of the most accessible, and therefore, most frequently visited glaciers in southeast Alaska.
Waymark Code: WMJHDK
Location: Alaska, United States
Date Posted: 11/19/2013
Views: 11
Mendenhall Glacier is a must see if you are visiting the Juneau area. It is easily accessible and a truly beautiful natural area. The prime draw is the glacier, but there is much more to see and do in the area, as it is situated within the Tongass National Forest.
"Juneau's most popular attraction (and the most easily accessible Alaska glacier) is the mighty, magnificent Mendenhall Glacier, located just 13 miles from downtown Juneau and only a few minutes from the airport.
The Mendenhall is just one of the 38 major glaciers that flow from the Juneau Icefield, an expanse of interconnected glaciers that sits just behind the mountains next to Juneau. The Icefield covers more than 1,500 square miles and runs from the Taku River inlet east of town to Skagway, 90 miles northwest. Now that's one big ice cube.
You have lots of options if you want to explore our glaciers. You can actually drive to the Mendenhall Glacier, but ground tour companies offer trips as well. Once you're there, the Forest Service operates an excellent walk-up visitor center." SOURCE
"The Mendenhall Glacier is one of Southeast Alaska’s most popular attractions. Located a short drive from downtown Juneau in the Tongass National Forest, the glacier is twelve miles long from its origin on the Juneau Icefield to its terminus at Mendenhall Lake.
Polished rocks, fine “flour” sediment, and plant succession in the valley serve as visual evidence of the glacier’s continual grinding, flowing, and retreating motion.
From late summer to early fall, red and silver salmon return to Steep Creek to spawn, drawing black bears and eagles close to the visitor center where everyone can enjoy the show.
Glacial ice at the terminus of Mendenhall Glacier has flowed for 200-250 years on its 13-mile trek to Mendenhall Lake across from the visitor center.
John Muir originally named the glacier “Auk” for the local Tlingit Native people. The glacier was renamed in 1892 in honor of Thomas C. Mendenhall, Superintendent of the U.S. Coast & Geodetic Survey." SOURCE