GLACIER BAY It was one of the most fascinating experiences in Alaska! Actually it was one of the most fascinating experiences in all of my travels! I had always visualized a 'glacier to be a big, boring, white chunk of ice. When we actually got closer to 'Margerie Glacier' in Glacier Bay I began to learn much more about them! Here, massive glaciers stretch from the ice-draped St. Elias and Fairweather mountain ranges to sit at the end of majestic fjords. Tidewater glaciers are rare in this world. With a perfect recipe of ocean, mountain height, and precipitation, we were graced with a dozen of them in Glacier Bay! It was like we were watching 'Mother Nature' at work ... the earth was actually moving slowly and the tons of ice was creaking, snapping, breaking and falling into the Bay. Calving is what they call the thunderous phenomenon that occurs when salt water melts the glacier and huge pieces of ice crack off the face of the glacier falling into the water below. The sounds were like no other and the blue color of the ice was unique. I kept thinking that I am watching something that started 4,000 years ago ... and is currently changing the world, as we know it! I thought that after all of the ices that I was watching slowly disappear would one day be a river. It would make new land formations after the ice slowly destroyed all of the rock as it moved across it. Just looking down into the waters would fascinate me! It's like there would be small pieces of ice floating everywhere around the ship ... and if there was a clear place on top of the water all of the ice would race toward it! I plan to return to Glacial Bay so that I can see the breathtaking sights and hear the remarkable sounds one day!

* GLACIERS & GLACIAL ICE * DID YOU KNOW:

* Glaciers are formed when years of snowfall compact into ice and begin to slide down the mountainside. Gravity and meltwater combine to drag the ice mess towards sea.

* The Glaciers in Glacial Bay are remnants of the Little Ice Age, which began 4000 years ago.

* Minke, Humpback, and Orca whales are sometimes spotted in Glacier Bay.

* Glacier photograph best on cloudy days when the blue in the ice is most visible.

* Glacial ice is blue because blue is the only color not absorbed by the physical characteristics of the ice molecules.

* Compressed air trapped inside glacial ice creates a phenomenon called 'ice sizzle'. As the ice melts, the bubbles burst creating an audible snap, crackle and pop.

* Although it took thousands of years for Glacial Bay to fill with ice, it took only 200 years for it to melt!

* GLACIER BAY * TOP 10 QUESTIONS: *

1) Why does the ice look blue? - Glacial ice is not very different from the ice in your freezer. If an ice cube the size of your house is compacted under great force it would have a bluish cast. When light (composed of all the colors of the rainbow) hits the crystals, long wavelength colors (reds) are absorbed, while short wavelength colors (blues) reflect back through the ice to your eyes.

2) Does the Bay freeze in the winter? - The combination of wind, tidal fluctuation, and moderate maritime temperatures keep the bay from freezing over completely. A thin layer of 'pan ice' does form periodically on sheltered, secluded inlets with a large influx of fresh water.

3) Can anybody bring a boat in here? - The current park vessel management plan permits only 2 cruise ships, 3 tour boats, 6 charter boats, and 25 private motor vessels a day in the bay.

4) Where are the whales? - Humpback whales are most often seen in the lower portion of Glacier Bay near the park headquarters. Killer Whales (Orcas) are unpredictable throughout the year.

5) How high is the face of Margerie Glacier? - About 1-mile wide, with an ice face that is about 250 feet high above the waterline, but with it's base about 100 feet below the sea level. The Grand Pacific and Lamplugh Glaciers each rise about 150 feet above the sea.

6) Why is the Grand Pacific Glacier so dirty? - All glaciers contain rock debris, particularly at the sides. Avalanches, rock slides, and the scouring of the valley by the ice add to the accumulation. Some glaciers are dirtier than others. These glaciers may be fed by many tributary glaciers, each adding a load of rock to the main glacier, and at times look more like a rock than ice.

7) How deep is Glacier Bay? - Very deep! This bay of the Pacific Ocean was carved out by a Glacier and then filled in with the saltwater as the Glacier retreated, creating a fjord. Much of Glacier Bay is over 1000 feet deep.

8) What are the chances of seeing ice fall? - Glaciers in Southeast Alaska can MOVE OVER 5 FEET IN A DAY! Gravity draws the ice down the mountain slope, and the saltwater melts it from the bottom causing it to collapse. Ice falling from the Glacier (calving) usually occurs a few times an hour from these tidewater glaciers.

9) What's the weather like here? - It rains a lot (about 80 inches a year near park headquarters). But the months of May and June are the sunniest (over 50% chance of sunshine). It is usually not as cloudy near the Glaciers as in the lower portions of the Bay. The mountains and ice mass create a localized high-pressure system that deflects the clouds. The constantly changing moods and quality of the light are part of Glacier Bay National Park's scenic splendor.

10) Is 'global warming' melting the Glaciers? - The earth has been undergoing a warming trend over the last 200 years, even before the industrial revolution and human interference in the atmosphere. Glaciers worldwide have been receding since then, including many in Glacier Bay. Time will tell if humans are influencing this. But even as the earth warms there are ADVANCING glaciers in the park, being nourished by the usually abundant snowfall high in the Fairweather Mountains.