Alaska’s Glacier Bay Nationwide Park & Protect: The entire information

Amongst North America’s best-known nationwide parks, Glacier Bay is a little bit of an outlier.

Not like Yellowstone or Yosemite, you may’t go to Glacier Bay on a street journey. There are not any roads main into the park, and the one method to attain it’s by small airplane, boat or ship.

There’s additionally little infrastructure throughout the park. It does have a customer heart and a lodge, positioned at its very edge. However its largest sights — its big tidewater glaciers — are viewable solely from the deck of a vessel. At its essence, Glacier Bay is a big, fjordlike physique of water lined with snowcapped mountains, forests and glaciers, and it is best seen from the water.

It is for that reason that a big share of Glacier Bay’s almost 700,000 guests a yr arrive on a cruise ship. Certainly, you could possibly nearly name Glacier Bay a cruise ship park.

Solely by arriving by cruise vessel (or one other boat, together with the park tour boat) are you able to totally expertise the park by touring up the 65-mile-long waterway to a glacier and again.

Even so, you will solely see a small portion of the park. Established as a nationwide monument in 1925 and elevated to nationwide park standing in 1980, Glacier Bay covers greater than 5,200 sq. miles — an space in regards to the measurement of Connecticut. That makes it almost as large as Yellowstone and Yosemite mixed, although a lot of this space is comparatively inaccessible.

As a longtime journey author specializing in cruising, I have been to Glacier Bay many instances, and it is one among my favourite locations in Alaska. Its glaciers are its star sights, for positive. But it surely additionally affords spectacular mountain surroundings, wildlife and — for individuals who make an effort to return for a multinight keep — great mountaineering, kayaking and different outdoorsy pursuits.

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Attending to Glacier Bay

As famous above, most of Glacier Bay’s guests arrive by cruise ship. The everyday cruise that features a go to to Glacier Bay is a seven-night Alaska voyage out of Vancouver, British Columbia, or Seattle that additionally consists of stops on the Alaskan cities of Juneau, Skagway and Ketchikan. The go to to Glacier Bay fills simply at some point of the seven-night journey.

Two main traces with historic ties to the park — Princess Cruises and Holland America — provide essentially the most Alaska sailings that embrace a go to to Glacier Bay. The Nationwide Park Service permits simply two ships a day into the park, and arrivals are ruled by a allowing system that provides choice to traces that operated within the park earlier than the allowing system started.

Norwegian Cruise Line, Seabourn, Cunard Line and Viking even have ships that go to the park, as do small-ship operators UnCruise Adventures, Alaskan Dream Cruises, Lindblad Expeditions and American Cruise Strains.

A visit on a cruise ship is not the one method to get into Glacier Bay. Would-be guests also can fly or take a ferry to Gustavus, a tiny city (inhabitants 612) on the sting of the park that’s close to the entry level for a tour boat that travels into the park day by day. Dubbed “Baranof Wind” and operated by park concessionaire Aramark, the tour boat departs from Bartlett Cove, which is simply contained in the park boundary and the house to the park’s customer heart.

In the course of the summer season vacationer season, Alaska Airways affords day by day service to Gustavus Airport (GST) from Juneau Worldwide Airport (JNU), 48 miles to the southeast. An air taxi firm, Alaska Seaplanes, affords small-plane flights to Gustavus from Juneau year-round. Ferry service to Gustavus is thru the Alaska Marine Freeway System, which sends a ferry to the city usually from Juneau.

The 2 major airways that fly to Juneau are Alaska Airways and Delta Air Strains.

Park guests can also arrive on the park by personal or chartered boat.

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When to go

Whereas Glacier Bay is open year-round, customer companies are restricted exterior of the summer season season, and almost all people who visits comes between Could and September.

Most cruises that embrace a cease in Glacier Bay happen between April and September, and the Glacier Bay tour boat solely runs in the summertime months. The park’s customer heart and solely lodge (Glacier Bay Lodge), which share a constructing, are also solely open in the summertime.

Summer season is essentially the most nice time to be in Glacier Bay, temperature-wise. However even on the peak of summer season, it may be chilly, with temperatures topping out between 50 and 60 levels throughout sunlight hours. Rain can be frequent, with the world round Gustavus getting round 70 inches a yr.

April, Could and June are sometimes the driest months; September and October are usually the wettest. The underside line is that, even at midsummer, try to be ready for any kind of climate. Pack good rain gear, waterproof boots, wool or fleece layers and a heat hat and gloves.

Regardless of once you go, there is no payment to enter Glacier Bay, which is uncommon for nationwide parks. Nor are there charges for tenting or boating permits. So, you may depart your nationwide park annual move at dwelling.

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What to see and do

Because the identify suggests, Glacier Bay is a park all about glaciers. It is dwelling to greater than 1,000 of them, and seeing a glacier up shut is the large draw for many guests.

Particularly, vacationers come to view one of many park’s seven-ish big tidewater glaciers, which circulate down from the mountains to the water. I say seven-ish because the park’s rangers up to now couple of years have famous that a number of the tidewater glaciers have melted again a lot that they will not be interacting with the ocean water anymore. That is the definition of a tidewater glacier. The park rangers lately prefer to say there are “not more than seven” of the tidewater glaciers now, possibly fewer.

The discount within the variety of tidewater glaciers on the park is an ongoing development. After I wrote an earlier model of this information a couple of years in the past, the variety of tidewater glaciers on the park was 9.

Regardless of the precise quantity, for these visiting Glacier Bay by cruise ship, the expertise will revolve closely round a cease at one among these glaciers to look at big chunks of ice crash down from its face — an impressive present.

Cruise ships arrive within the park for the higher a part of a day, and the expertise goes past a cease at one of many park’s glaciers. Sightings of puffins, harbor seals, Steller sea lions and even the occasional humpback whale or brown bear are a part of the attract — all whereas touring by water by way of an immense glacier-carved panorama.

In case you come on a giant cruise ship, you will be doing all your Glacier Bay viewing from the deck of your vessel. Large cruise ships in Glacier Bay by no means dock, and no one will get off them. Nonetheless, you will get the total Nationwide Park Service expertise. Park rangers and sometimes an area Huna Tlingit cultural information will board the vessel for the day to supply displays and shipwide commentary over loudspeakers, lead actions for youths and reply questions.

Some small cruise vessels that spend the evening in Glacier Bay do permit passengers to disembark.

For these guests who journey by airplane or ferry to Gustavus, extra choices can be found. Along with taking the Glacier Bay day tour up the bay on the park tour boat ($265 per grownup; $138.76 for kids ages 3 to 12), guests will discover alternatives to hike, kayak and camp.

The day tour on the park tour boat consists of stops at two glaciers — Margerie and Grand Pacific. Every towers almost 250 ft above the ocean and stretches one other 100 ft beneath the water. The ice that calves from their faces is, on common, 200 years outdated.

Mountain climbing trails throughout the park close to Gustavus vary from the 1-mile Forest Path, which affords a leisurely meander by way of a lush forest, to the 8-mile-long Bartlett Lake Path, a rugged trek to a tranquil lake. Most guests head down one of many trails on their very own, however for these in search of interpretation, park rangers based mostly at Bartlett Cove provide a day by day guided forest loop stroll (at 1:30 p.m., as of the publication of this story).

Kayak leases can be found at Bartlett Cove, the place the park service customer heart is positioned, for each day journeys across the space and multiday outings deep into the park. Kayakers can go off on their very own or join a guided tour.

Birdwatching additionally is a well-liked exercise in Glacier Bay. The park’s various habitat permits for all kinds of species (ultimately depend, 281), together with rainforest species such because the American three-toed woodpecker and neotropical migrant warblers, thrushes and different songbirds. There are also island and cliff seabird colonies of gulls, guillemots, puffins and cormorants.

Moreover, day by day cultural actions can be found at Xunaa Shuka Hit (the tribal home) in Bartlett Cove. Unveiled in 2016, that is the primary everlasting Huna Tlingit clan home for the reason that unique Huna Tlingit villages of the world have been destroyed by a glacier over 250 years in the past. Positioned inside quick strolling distance of Glacier Bay Lodge, it affords the possibility to be taught firsthand about Huna Tlingit historical past, tradition and life from tribal elders. Guests also can expertise dance performances and native meals and see historic pictures. Handcarved totem poles inform the Huna Tlingit story.

A Nationwide Park Service customer heart is positioned on the second stage of Glacier Bay Lodge. Park rangers can be found a lot of the day to reply questions, and movies on the park can be found for watching within the customer heart’s auditorium. A ranger program is introduced within the auditorium every night.

Guests can also get an summary of Glacier Bay’s mountains, ice and water from a flightseeing tour out of Gustavus and even the Alaskan cities of Yakutat or Haines.

The place to remain

In case you’re arriving at Glacier Bay on a cruise, you do not have to fret about a spot to remain. You may be spending the evening in your ship.

These planning to go to the park by means of Gustavus will discover a number of locations to mattress down. Many guests keep on the 48-room Glacier Bay Lodge, which is throughout the park about 10 miles from the city (rooms begin from $281.86 an evening). Cozy and rustic, the lodge is nestled amongst Sitka spruce on the shores of Bartlett Cove, which is also dwelling to the park’s headquarters and serves because the jumping-off level for day by day excursions on the park boat. Glacier Bay Lodge is the one lodging throughout the park.

Again in Gustavus, you will discover a handful of small inns, guesthouses and bed-and-breakfast institutions. They embrace the 14-room Bear Observe Inn (from $520 per particular person, per day, together with meals and floor transportation) and the five-room and five-cabin Glacier Bay Nation Inn (from $329 per particular person, per day, together with meals and floor transportation). Gustavus is not a giant place; some venues right here provide just some rooms.

You additionally might face a little bit of sticker shock when seeing the charges for lodging in Gustavus. In lots of instances, that is pushed by the truth that the properties function on a semi-all-inclusive foundation, with all meals and transportation from the airport included within the base worth.

Sadly for factors and miles devotees, there are not any factors inns in Gustavus. Yow will discover a couple of factors inns again in Juneau, such because the 4 Factors by Sheraton Juneau (rooms in the summertime begin at $389 or 50,000 factors per evening) and a trio of Wyndham Rewards-affiliated properties (a Ramada, a Travelodge and a Tremendous 8).

The park additionally maintains a free walk-in campground in a rainforest setting at Bartlett Cove. Accessible on a first-come, first-served foundation, it affords bearproof meals storage caches, composting bogs, a fireplace pit on the seashore and a small warming shelter. Firewood is offered.

That mentioned, most tenting in Glacier Bay takes place within the wilderness. The park affords greater than 700 linear miles of shorelines, seashores and islands open to tenting. Campers can prepare for the park’s tour boat to drop them off at one among a number of designated areas throughout the park and choose them up days later.

Campers should register upon arrival on the Customer Data Station close to the Bartlett Cove dock. Campers can name 907-697-2627 previous to arrival to inquire about area availability on the campground at Bartlett Cove.

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The place to eat

Once more, in case you’re arriving by cruise ship, you will be consuming on board your vessel.

In case you’re staying within the Gustavus space, you will most likely be consuming on the lodge or inn the place you are staying or at one other one of many lodging properties on the town. The city is so small that its eating institutions usually are tied to its lodging shops. They’re additionally solely open in summer season.

Lots of the lodging choices provide a “full board” plan that features three meals every day. Be warned {that a} la carte pricing at eateries may be excessive within the Gustavus space, as is true in lots of locations in Alaska. This partly has to do with the excessive price of getting provides to distant elements of the state.

For these staying at Glacier Bay Lodge, the in-house restaurant, the Fairweather Eating Room, is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner for each lodge company and outsiders. The dinner menu consists of native Alaska salmon and halibut. Lunch brings burgers and sandwiches (together with a halibut sandwich).

Additionally open to company and outsiders is the restaurant at Glacier Bay Nation Inn. It serves Alaskan delicacies, resembling salmon, sometimes provided en croute with a inexperienced peppercorn sauce.

Backside line

A go to to Glacier Bay is among the iconic experiences of a visit to Alaska and one thing it’s best to attempt to do a minimum of as soon as in your life — if solely to see the large calving glaciers. For many guests, experiencing the park will contain a voyage on a cruise ship that brings only a day within the park. However for individuals who need to discover deeper within the park, there are methods to try this, too.

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