Returning To The Glacier

My friends and I initially explored the Knik Glacier last week with a massive group of other off road vehicles. This time around we only went with a small group and a few vehicles. As we left town, the blizzard intensified and we began growing weary of the 25 miles completely off road to get to the glacier. There were no others cars in sight as we arrived at the trail head, a worrying sign as we just received nearly a foot of new snow in the last two days. After a short deliberation we decided to just go for it. I was in my friends jeep and we had a Nissan Xttera and a truck with us. The Xterra had a winch, which will prove to be vital later in the day.

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We made our way on top over very thin ice weaving around massive holes and in and out of trees. As we were rolling across a a particularly thin area, the Xterra broke through. Thankfully we have a winch installed and we were able to pull off of the trees to safety. We were stuck for about 45 minutes while trying to break apart the ice shelf holding the car in place.

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Once out of the treeline we found ourselves on a barren stretch of land. The wind had been unrelentingly the night before and coupled with the heavy snowfall the land looked like a white desert. We were the first vehicles on this path and we had to forge our own trail. The snow was so deep in some places it nearly covered the tires completely.

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After a very long 25 miles we reached the glacier for the second time. Surrounded by clouds, directly above the glacier was the only place the sun was shining. As the light hit the land, the ice sparkled like a beacon in the distance.

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We spent the day exploring ice caves and observing the immense scale of the glacial ice. The massive ice you see actually frozen in place in a glacial lake. During the summer, the lake thaws and the ice can float freely.

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Here, @dimitri0610 is enjoying the natural playground formed by the freezing ice.

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One of our friends discovered a small cave tucked into the side of a massive wall of ice. The ice was a deep blue, the bluest I have ever seen. We crawled inside and made our way through the narrow passage. At the end an opening framed the jeep perfectly.

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This was our second time back to this glacier and it was just as inspiring as the first. This is something I've come to realize about Alaska. You can go to the same location countless times and it will still take your breath away just as it did during the first time. Many places in Alaska are difficult or nearly impossible to reach. Unlike many places in the rest of the country that are flooded with tourists, you have to put in tremendous effort to explore Alaska. I'm grateful to have friends willing to go to the extreme to explore and I'll definitely miss this place when I eventually leave. Until then though, I'll continue to share my adventures and bring Alaska a little closer to you.

Side note: The 1997 Jeep in these photos has over 190,000 miles on it and is still going strong. It never got stuck during our trip and it's been through pretty much anything you could think of.

Thank you so much for reading and supporting my stories!

-- Chase