Glacier Bay

We spent the entire day in the spectacular and wild Glacier Bay National Park. This place, meaning the bay, did not exist even 200 years ago. It has been slowly revealed through the recession of the glaciers that once filled the bay. The glaciers are here due to the Fairweather Range. With several peaks over 12,000 feet and Mt. Fairweather at 15,300 feet, they capture huge amounts of snowfall every year which slowly turn into ice which then runs as frozen rivers down to the sea. The name of the mountain and the range made sense today as only a few clouds were seen at the very high peaks all day. This range of mountains has the distinction of the greatest relief, or steepest sides, of any coastal mountain range in the world. Going from sea level to over 15,000 feet in only a dozen miles or so. That is what this photo shows, the sea to the top of Mt. Fairweather where it never rises above freezing.