Alaska: Exit Glacier

We try to to make the rounds of our favorite places on the Kenai Peninsula at least once a year. When Tad was little, Skip used to have a contract here (before it got outsourced to Anchorage). In the summer, Tad and I would join him and spend the day, wandering around town until Skip got off work. We'd take the bike path (I think it used to be the start of the railroad) from the SeaLife center up to the small commercial district in town. I have always loved going to Seward. Even on a rainy day, the scenery is spectacular with high mountains on either side of Resurrection. The Alaska Railroad starts here. Giant cruiseships come into the bay. For our family, a visit to Seward means two things: a visit to the Alaska SeaLife Center (open 7 days a week in the summer) and a trip to Exit Glacier. How to get there. The SeaLife Center is located in Seward, at Milepost 0 of the Seward Highway. To reach Exit Glacier from Seward, head north on 3rd St which should become Highway 9. Turn left on Exit Glacier Road and after 2 miles, and make a slight left on Old Exit Glacier Road. The park is another 6.5 miles up the road. As you're driving toward the glacier, notice the Windsong Lodge on the right--we have stayed at several places in Seward, from B& Bs to hotels, but this has always been our favorite (we like to make the drive from Soldotna, spend the night and get up the next morning for a hike before heading home). As you continue along Exit Glacier Road, you'll notice small signposts --these indicate where the glacier was in previous years and give you a sense of how global warming affects the glaciers. To give you an idea, when I first moved to Alaska, you could see Portage Glacier from the highway. Now you have to take a boat. When you get to the parking lot at Exit Glacier, check the board at the Visitors Center for any bear sightings. You can hike up to the glacier--it's not that hard. Just be careful not to get too close. Remember, glaciers are dynamic entities, which means they shift and break off massive chunks of ice. The weather can be variable in Seward, so bring gear that covers a wide range of temperature and precipitation (rain!) and bring your mosquito repellent.

Minnow's tip #1: Go earlier in the day. Really. The parking lot has been expanded dramatically over the past 12 years, but it still fills up by noon.

Minnow's tip #2: There are bears! Many bears! Brown bears! Black bears!

Minnow's tip #3: The Exit Glacier Run is over for this year, but think about it for 2009. The race course goes along the Resurrection River, which is the terminus for the Resurrection River Trail, and through one of the most scenic valleys in Alaska.