Losing My Glacier Virginity

Alaska is off to an amazing start. It truly is The Last Frontier. On Day #1 of my Alaskan adventure, Gwendolyn and I found ourselves at the bottom of Exit Glacier. This was my first ever glacier experience and it was incredible. I have always loved snow and ice, everything about it. In front of me was this river of ice coming down from the Harding Icefield. Thousands of feet deep, a hint of blue from how dense the ice is, but despite that the ice is liquefied underneath from the massive amounts of pressure as it glides along. Scientists estimate that Exit Glacier moves a foot per day, but loses much more per day from melting. Seeing a real glacier upfront and in person gives you a different perspective of global warming. There was a map showing how far the glacier stretched 200 years ago, probably an additional mile long. Exit Glacier is just my first and at about four miles it’s one of smaller ones around I can’t wait to see more.

Also as my first full day in Seward I had a small tour showing me around town. We stopped at the Seward Resort where I once applied for a job. The resort is much nicer than I always imagined. I saw Spring Creek, Alaska’s only maximum security prison, you may have seen a program about Spring Creek on either MSNBC or Court TV. The views from the shores of Resurrection Bay are breathtaking. The mountains seem to come from nowhere. And these are much different than say the Rockies, they are so much newer, rugged, and jagged. They seem tall around the bay, but are relatively small since you’re seeing them from sea level.

This is the place to write my book. Maybe I can find someone with a huge house and an extra room where I can be a house sitter.