As planned, I packed up camp and hoofed it a few miles into downtown Seward to meet Gary in the lobby of his hotel. After a complimentary breakfast (albeit in this case...a stolen one) we hit the fog covered roads towards the trailhead for the Harding Icefield. After saying goodbye to Gary and underexpressing my gratitude, he sped off in his fancy rental car with all the bells and whistles. The odds of me ever seeing Gary again are thin at best but wherever he is, I hope his bucket list keeps getting smaller while he becomes increasingly less rushed to check it off.
After my boot straps were fastened I stood up, filled my water bladder, and rolled up my sleeves. Before getting underway I ran into two travelers who I met as I left the Denali backcountry - Gloria and Alfredo (wait was that his name?...erg I don't feel like getting up to check my adventure tome). Small world, huh? Hundreds of miles away and I see probably the two of the very few faces I'd recognize in the entire state. The familiarity was a welcome surprise.
Ahead of us was a 3000 foot ascent over 3 miles. Without my pack, this was a piece of cake. Along the path there were countless switchbacks, Jurassic Park style brush, bears, and over my left shoulder was an enormous glacier that radiated from the Harding Icefield atop the mountain. The weather changes from dry to rainy were expected but never could have I expected the landscape changes. Over the next few hours the path seemingly lead through Jurassic Park to Hoth. At this point, does anyone still think there might be a chance I'm not a nerd? If I haven't convinced you yet I'm sure by the time this is all done I could prove it. Jokes aside...the Harding Icefield is truly otherworldly. In just a matter of hours and miles, I had been transported from one world to another. See for yourself...
Fitting...plus tis the season!
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| Dino DNA! |
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| Waves of ice! |
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| The glacier carving the earth atop the Harding Icefield |
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| It was about to get a heluva lot colder... |
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| So nice of him/her to join me! |
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| Yes keep eating those berries...I taste gross! |
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| As long as I stay more interested in you and not vice versa |
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| Up yonder...the Harding Icefield... |
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| What makes those tire tred-like tracks?! |
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| A river of ice |
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| I think this is called a hanging glacier...someone correct me if I'm wrong |
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| The Peak above the Icefield |
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| So tempted to sleep here |
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| Added my carving to the crowd of carvings |
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| Approaching the icefield... |
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| First glimpse onto the icefield...it stretched on for miles and miles and miles! A natural wonder (at least for me) |
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| Ice cave...too bad I didn't have my spelunking gear! |
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| See the cave? |
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| What design do YOU see in the ice? |
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| What did I tell you...otherworldly, right?! 3 hours prior I was in a lush forest with my sleeves rolled up |
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| A picture does this 1% justice |
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| Self-proclaimed BAMF! |
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| To give you a sense of scale...that ice cube down there...is roughly the size of a large Irish Catholic family... |
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| Looks like I'm not the only one who found this place romantic. |
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| I mean look how effing blue this ice is! |
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| Incredible lines...did I mention that nature is pretty awesome |
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| A patch of hope in a land of despair |
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| And the rain came... |
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| Green is still my favorite color...yup |
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| Vastness |
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| A stream carving through a glacier, carving through the mountain |
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| Yup...never seen anything like this before |
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| Ice: "Photograph me!" |
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| I wonder where that dirt started its glacier ride!? |
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| Yup..I'm laying underneath a glacier. No big deal |
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| Am I back in Ireland? |
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| Like Alaska...hard and rugged |
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