Continuing our Alaskan adventure from this post…Pippin Lake was half way mark on our trip. Next on was Wrangell-St. Elias National Park – highlight being the glacier hike!
Day 5: Glacier Walking At Wrangell St. Elias National Park
There are several glaciers that you can hike in Alaska. Wrangell St. Elias National Park is neither the most touristy nor the most easily accessible. If I had to replan the whole trip, I will skip this part of the journey and only do a more easily accessible glacier hike.
The only way you will be allowed to go on the glacier is with the help of guided tours. We booked a small-group tour with https://www.steliasguides.com for the half-day Root Glacier hike. Since it takes around 90 minutes to just reach the glacier, this is easily a full-day activity.
The hike starts around 10.30 AM but it takes around two hours to just get to Kennicott River Bridge (see box below). One could also choose to take the shuttle at the start of McCarthy Road but that would mean adding more hours to the ride in the morning. We had researched online and we felt comfortable enough doing the drive ourselves.
Unforgettable Trip Memory: I had a bad bout of food poisoning the night before and I wasn’t sure I was going to make it. I left with Kapil and Agastya in the morning, mentally prepared to sit in the car all day and wait for them to come back from the hike. However, YOLO, so I grit my teeth and walked the glacier. It was an incredible experience and something I will never get to do again. But I also feel that I shouldn’t have pushed myself so hard.
Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark is the gateway town to the national park and can be accessed through the McCarthy Road. The McCarthy Road is a narrow, gravel road that is 59 miles to the Kennicott River Bridge.
There is a private parking area at the Kennicott River Bridge where you will be able to park your car and will be typically covered as part of your glacier hiking fee. From that point onwards, you will have to rely on a private shuttle that transports visitors from the east side of the bridge to McCarthy and Kennecott for a fee (summer only).
Since the McCarthy Road is a gravel road, most rental car companies do not allow their cars on this road. Please check with your rental company to find out their regulations. The McCarthy Road is NOT owned by the National Park Service.
If you don't want to drive, there are other options. There are two companies that provide a daily shuttle to Kennecott/McCarthy during the summer and air taxis provide daily flights during the summer.
Source: NPS Site.
Note: We did take our rental on the McCarthy Road and faced no issues. However, it is quite a sparsely used road and the conditions are not that great. The cost of the parking and shuttle was part of the fee for our hiking trip.
Day 6: Pippin Lake to Seward
Muscles were kinda sore after the glacier hike the day before, so we will all looking forward to a day of chilling in the car as we made our way towards Seward (via Anchorage). The Glenn Highway to Anchorage is yet another scenic roadways with stunning views of glaciers visible from the freeway, crystal lakes and just breathtaking scenery.
Potential stops include Eureka Summit (Alaska’s premiur recreation sites), Matansuka Glacier (super easily accessible), Matanuska Glacier Scenic Turnout (if you don’t have time to go the glacier park, there is small pull out with a good view of the glacier. As we were trying to hit Seward by the evening, we really didn’t have time to stop at a lot places – but would recommend Eureka or Matansuka as full day activities.
We did stop at the Eagle River Nature Center where we spotted NOTHING. But its a pretty nature center with lovely hikes. If you have an eagle eye (ha, see what I did there), you will have opportunities to spot wildlife, including beaver and salmon, which you can see from dedicated viewing deck.
The weather was pretty cloudy so we were a little rushed to make it to Seward on time. It was already mid-afternoon by the time we reached Anchorage so we didn’t take a break and kept going towards Seward.
Now the Seward to Anchorage drive is supposed to be another of those stupendously gorgeous drives – but with the evening clouds and drizzle we didn’t catch much of it. We hoped to get better weather on the way back.
ProTip: Anchorage to Seward is better for sightseeing on the way than the way back. Your driving on the right side of the road, next to the water and have many opportunities to stop. On the way back, we had to skip many view points as the oncoming traffic didnt give us much opportunity to pull over.
Day 7: Kenai Fjords National Park
The reason to make way to Seward is to take a day cruise to Kenai Fjords National Park. Several cruises depart from the Seward harbor. We recommend taking the 8.00 AM cruise that goes all the way to the glacier – typically 6 hrs long. Check in an hr before departure and be sure to carry layers/rain coat -yes, even in summer.
Day 8: Exit Glacier & Anchorage
Last day in Alaska started with a short, quick trip to Exit Glacier – a sobering sight as it documents how the glacier is receding every year due to global warming. As you head towards Anchorage consider the following stops: Kenai Lake viewpoint, scenic view points along Turnagain Arm, spot whales at Beluga Point, McHugh Creek Falls.
Once at Anchorage, we hung around downtown , did some souvenir shopping. It had been a wonderful trip and we were ready to go home.
