Matanuska Glacier

“To the lover of pure wildness Alaska is one of the most wonderful countries in the world.” ~John Muir

My first morning in Alaska, and the view from the Matanuska Glacier State Recreation Site Cabin. Matanuska Glacier, AK – March, 2013

to Matanuska Glacier

I arrived in Anchorage late one afternoon (my first trip to Alaska – March 2013), got a few supplies (beer and firewood), and headed to the Matanuska Glacier Cabin. I was very fortunate to have a good friend living in AK at the time, who had pre-purchased my real supplies (white gas and food stuffs).

March in Alaska: the temperature when I left WV was about 26°F, and the temp when I landed in Anchorage was about 28°F…not so bad, not too different, right? Well, in Fairbanks one night as I was photographing on a mountain top and it was -14°F, not including the windchill from 20-30 mph winds…I had frostbite around my nostrils where the two layers of balaclavas didn’t cover. Anyway, more about Matanuska Glacier… 

I’ve always wanted to see the cold, raw nature of the earth carving glaciers, and after doing some research on accessible glaciers in Alaska, Matanuska was the one I chose. The below photo was taken just after the sun had set, and is highlighted by the alpine glow on the Sercas. This is perhaps my favorite photograph I’v captured to date…

Alpine Glow on the Seracs – Perhaps my favorite photo from my 2013 Alaska trip. Matanuska Glacier, AK – March 2013

… Thinking that the photos would be surreal from within the Seracs, I ventured into one of the dark crevasses between the blades of towering ice. I was roped up, and used an avalanche pole to prod along my path into the ice chasm, but in hind site just going near the towering blades of ice was a really bad idea. I showed a a few of these photos to a mountain rescue veteran and he was rather direct about my foolishness. Lesson learned, and thankfully not the hard way… I have done a little glacier travel in the past, and I’ve read up on the dangers, but i wasn’t very familiar with traversing near precariously positioned spires of ice, known as Seracs. Once temperatures start rising in the spring, they break often, and fall without much or any warning. Blue chunks of ice from a fallen Serac make up my final approach to the entrance of an accessible crevasse.

Seracs in the Setting Sun – Matanuska Glacier, AK – March, 2013

I wonder where is goes… *disclaimer: it’s much safer to just keep wondering…

Seracs are very unstable and break without warning. I could hear loud cracks and shift in the ice while I was traversing through the narrow passages. Matanuska Glacier, AK – March, 2013

This photograph was shot while between the Seracs…a dumb place to be.

After climbing around the glacier for a couple days, it was on to the next cabin by Fielding Lake, where I’d catch my first glimpse of the Aurora over Alaska… which I’ll be writing a post about soon! 

-My sister shot this photo of me.

-While leaving Matanuska Glacier, I happened to notice a plane trying to land on our car.. so we moved a bit and I took a picture. Matanuska Glacier, AK – March, 2013

Special thanks to Dan Koepke!

Dan is a good friend from high school, a fellow life enthusiast, and he’s been traveling the world adventuring for the last decade, and I think he might have worked a little here and there along the way.  By happenstance he was living near Anchorage at the time of my trip (I believe Alaska will forever be one of Dan’s homes), and we were able to coordinate a few days of exploring together… 10pm the night before our flight to AK, I threw my short-rope, harnesses, and piolet in my bag.. we had just added ice climbing to the itinerary (my sister objected to this decision pretty sternly, but that was until she swung her first ice tool into the sweet glacier ice). A good portion of how well I was able to maximize the enjoyment of my Alaska experience I owe to Dan.  His beta (advice) on traveling, hiking, and skiing Alaska was very helpful. He also acquired crucial supplies we needed for the trip so that my sister and I could head straight to the cabin after we landed (this was a huge stress reducer). Dan even had an extra set of crampons for my sister and I while we here at Matanuska Glacier, and he let me borrow some of his personal adventuring gear for the entirety of my trip (e.g. avi shovel, 5 gal. water jug, Nordic skis, and other essentials).

Please visit my Matanuska Glacier Gallery to view additional photos, my camera settings, and to purchase open edition prints of any of my adventure photos.