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Alaska Cruise Ship Ports - Glacier Bay National Park

General Information:



Glacier Bay National Park, Wilderness and Preserve sits at the northern end of the Alaska Panhandle, stretching from Gustavus west of Juneau north through one of the narrowest parts of the "pinch," where the state is narrowed down to about 20 miles from Mount Fairweather to the Gulf of Alaska, on to the Alsek River, one of the state's 26 national wild and scenic rivers and a favorite of rafters. The park has a long bay, which has several smaller arms, and a share of the Gulf of Alaska coastline.

The park is part of 24-million-acre block (37,500 square miles) of protected land, a World Heritage Site, that includes Wrangell-St. Elias National Park (the nation's largest) and Canada's Tatsenshini-Alsek Park and Canada's Kluane National Park.

The park is a wildlife lover's dream. Humpback and killer whales patrol the waters, and the five species of Pacific salmon swim through. The shoreline is busy with migrating birds. Inland, watch for bears, both brown and black -- and "glacier" bears, which are black bears in a bluish color phase. There are also moose, Sitka deer, wolves and wolverines.

The location of Glacier Bay was created by retreating glaciers. During the Little Ice Age a couple of hundred years ago, glaciers swept across the land and shoved human life southward to Chichagof, where refugees settled at Hoonah.

Location

The Park headquarters is at Bartlett Cove, 65 miles from Juneau. Glacier Bay can be reached only by boat or plane; there are no roads and no Alaska state ferry service. The only road in the park runs 10 miles between Bartlett Cove and the neighboring community of Gustavus. Travel options include scheduled and charter air services, tour boats, cruise ships, and charter boats. 

History

The first recorded charting of the area was done in 1794 by George Vancouver, in which he showed the bay being a small indentation in the Icy Strait with a gigantic glacier stretching off to the horizon. Yet by 1879 when the same area was visited by naturalist John Muir, the ice had retreated more than 50 km (30 miles) inland. By 1916, the retreat had doubled this distance. Thus, the bay area is a natural study ground for recolonization of freshly revealed land. The bay was set aside as a National Monument in 1925 and became its current National Park and Preserve in 1980, when approximately 85 percent of the park was designated a Wilderness Area. It has since been recognized as a UN Biosphere Reserve, in 1986, and a World Heritage Site, in 1992.

Activities

Visitors can enjoy cruises, boat tours, day activities at Bartlett Cove, recreational boating, and wilderness adventures including camping, kayaking, rafting, and mountaineering. The Alsek River and its major tributary, the Tatshenshini River, are large volume, swift glacial rivers.  Beginning in the interior, it is one of a small number of river systems which breach the coast range, offering boaters uncommon environmental diversity, impressive scenery, and an outstanding wilderness experience. Interpretive programs are offered during the summer months.