6.24.9 Pt 2 - BLUE ICE REALLY TOO BIG FOR COCKTAILS

“Go ahead, step on it.”
“But... I'll fall in.”
“No you won’t... go ahead”
“But... But... what if I slip.”
“You wont... go ahead... I'm here to catch you.”
“Oooooo, neat... it’s so blue”
“Yes, that’s because it so compacted, Taste it.”
“I'm not sticking my hand in there....”
Ok.... there it is again... so here’s the deal.

After getting back to the Ship for a quick bite, change camera batteries and freshen up, we head back out to the pier to meet the tour guide for the Helicopter to Mendenhall Glacier, board the bus and head to the airport.

We meet the crew at TAMSCO Air who give us a quick video briefing about the do’s and don’ts of Glacier landings. Next, we are issued Glacier Boots to put on over our own shoes. These are water proof, steel spiked boots that will help us keep our footing on the ice.

Then there’s the requisite picture with the Grizzly Bear in their flight center and we wait for our Flight Crew to return from their last drop off. This is a highly organized operation with some real professionals in charge. We check our bags, and bulk in a secure locker as this is part of the airport and FAA/Homeland Security requirements dictate the same rules as at any airport and since there is not x-ray machine, nothing goes on the helicopter except cameras.

Now for the facts:
Mendenhall Glacier is about 12 miles long located in Mendenhall Valley, about 12 miles from downtown Juneau.
Originally known as Sitaantaagu ("the Glacier Behind the Town") or Aak'wtaaksit ("the Glacier Behind the Little Lake") by the Tlingits, the glacier was named Auke (Auk) Glacier by naturalist John Muir for the Tlingit Auk Kwaan (or Aak'w Kwaan) band 1888. In 1899 it was renamed in honor of Thomas Corwin Mendenhall. It extends from the Juneau Ice field, its source, to Mendenhall Lake and ultimately the Mendenhall River.
From 1951–1958 the terminus of the glacier, which flows into suburban Juneau, has retreated 1,900 feet. The glacier has also receded 1.75 miles since 1958, when Mendenhall Lake was created, and over 2.5 miles since 1500. The end of the glacier currently has limited crevassing a negative glacier mass balance and will continue to retreat in the foreseeable future Given that average yearly temperatures are currently increasing, and the outlook is for this trend to continue, it is actually possible that the glacier might experience a period of stabilization or slight advance during its retreating march.

We board our helicopter with pilot Steve, a Buffalo, NY native who has been flying for 4 years and love his job. Dragon Lady gets the prime seat next to Steve and I get the window seat with a trio of Aussies in the rear seats. AND WE’RE OFF.

The flight takes us over the mountain tops surrounding Mendenhall and the lake for a short sightseeing tour before circling from the North onto the glacier. Steve sets us down on the lower level of the Glacier where we are met by a perky crew of Glacier Guides who proceed to give us the spiel of do’s and don’ts again along with a little gimmick about glacier whales where they lay on the ice, take a mouth full of water from the pure blue stream running down the glacier, roll over spit it up like a whale breaching and call that the Glacier Whale move... OK..Ok... ya had to be there, but we did get video of the whole trip.

“Go ahead, step on it.”
“But... I'll fall in.”
“No you won’t... go ahead”
“But... But... what if I slip.”
“You wont... go ahead... I'm here to catch you.”
“Oooooo, neat... it’s so blue”
“Yes, that’s because it so compacted, Taste it.”
“I'm not sticking my hand in there... its too cold”

And this was Dragon Lady’s introduction to blue ice and the pure water flowing down the glacier. 100,000 gallons per minute flows down the ice in several large streams flowing down and through the glacier into Mendenhall Lake and is a brilliant blue. This is due to the ice itself being tightly compacted with the absence of sunlight.

About the Weather...did I mention it was FABULOUS? Even with the wind chill on the glacier bringing the 30 degrees down to 20, it was still an incredible experience. Go to the Picasa album to see our trek on the ice.

If you ever get the opportunity to make this trip north... you MUST take the chopper trip onto the Ice, it is without a doubt one of the most incredible experiences either of us has had.

Time for dinner and a good night sleep, tomorrow is a walk through Sitka, former capitol of Alaska and the national forest there.

Ciao 4 Now,
Chuck and the Way Too pleased with her trip through the clouds to blue ice,
Dragon Lady