Glacier Bay National Park

Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve protects a spectacular wilderness of tidewater glaciers, fjords, mountains and sea in Southeast Alaska — a UNESCO World Heritage Site where great rivers of ice flow down from towering peaks to calve thunderously into the cold ocean. A landscape revealed by one of the fastest glacial retreats ever recorded, it is a place of dramatic beauty and abundant marine life.

Just over two centuries ago the bay was buried under ice; as the glaciers retreated dozens of miles, they uncovered the fjords and a living laboratory of returning life. Today visitors explore mostly by boat — cruise ships, tour boats and kayaks — watching glaciers calve and spotting humpback whales, orcas, sea otters, seals, bears and seabirds. Sacred to the Huna Tlingit, whose homeland it is, Glacier Bay is a treasured natural icon of Alaska.

Glacier Bay is experienced mostly from the water — on cruise ships and day tour boats that cruise up the bay to the tidewater glaciers and wildlife, and by sea kayak (a magnificent if serious way to explore the fjords and camp in the wilderness). The small park headquarters at Bartlett Cove (near Gustavus) offers a lodge, a few forest trails, ranger programs and kayak access. Watching the glaciers calve and the marine wildlife from a boat, and sea kayaking the fjords, are the signature draws. The combination of tidewater glaciers, fjords and abundant marine life makes Glacier Bay extraordinary.

Summer (late May through early September) is the season, when tour boats, cruises and the lodge operate, the days are long, the whales and wildlife are present, and the (still cool and often rainy) weather is mildest. Outside summer, access and services are very limited. The whales feed in summer; the glaciers calve year-round. Summer is the clear highlight — come in the warmer months for boat tours, whale watching and kayaking, dress for cool, wet Southeast Alaska weather, and plan ahead (access is by boat or air to Gustavus).

Glacier Bay is the homeland of the Huna Tlingit, who were driven from the bay by the advancing ice centuries ago and retain deep ties to it (a tribal house now stands at Bartlett Cove). Explorer-naturalist John Muir famously visited in 1879 and helped make the bay’s rapid glacial retreat famous. The area was protected as a national monument in 1925 and a national park and preserve in 1980, and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Glacier Bay preserves this wilderness of ice and sea and its Tlingit heritage, a treasured icon of Alaska.

Glacier Bay is a showcase of glaciation and rapid change — just over 200 years ago a single great glacier filled the bay, and its astonishingly fast retreat (dozens of miles) has uncovered the fjords, leaving tidewater glaciers that still flow from the high Fairweather Range (crowned by 15,000-foot Mount Fairweather) to calve into the sea. The land, freed of the ice’s weight, is even rising (isostatic rebound). The retreating glaciers, the deep glacier-carved fjords and the rising land created and continually reshape this dramatic icy seascape.

Glacier Bay teems with wildlife — humpback whales and orcas feed in its waters, along with sea otters (which have rebounded dramatically), harbor seals (which haul out on the icebergs), Steller sea lions, porpoises, and abundant seabirds (puffins, murres, kittiwakes), while the shores and forests host brown and black bears, moose, mountain goats and wolves. The rich cold waters and the recovering land support abundant life. Glacier Bay is one of the great wildlife-watching destinations in Alaska, with whales, sea otters, seals on the ice and seabirds among the highlights from the water.

Glacier Bay is a living laboratory of ecological succession and a rich marine ecosystem — as the glaciers have retreated, the bare land has been recolonized by life from pioneer plants to mature spruce-hemlock rainforest (a sequence visible up the bay), while the cold, nutrient-rich waters support a thriving marine food web from plankton to whales. The whole is sensitive to a warming climate and to disturbance. Protecting the glaciers’ setting, the recovering land, the rich waters and the wildlife sustains both the ecology and the grandeur of Glacier Bay.

Glacier Bay National Park holds a treasured place among the icons of Alaska — a UNESCO World Heritage wilderness of tidewater glaciers, fjords and abundant marine life, famous since John Muir for its dramatic glacial retreat, and the sacred homeland of the Huna Tlingit people. Its calving glaciers, whales and wild fjords embody the icy grandeur of Southeast Alaska. Glacier Bay is a cherished natural and cultural icon of Alaska.

Glacier Bay National Park is in Southeast Alaska, near the small town of Gustavus, reachable only by boat or plane (no roads) — many visitors arrive by cruise ship that cruises the bay, or fly/ferry to Gustavus for the park headquarters at Bartlett Cove (with a lodge, campground, trails and day tour boats and kayak access). There is no entrance fee, but cruise ships and boats are permit-limited to protect the bay. Services are seasonal and limited. Check the National Park Service for access, the day tour boat, lodging and conditions before visiting.

The National Park Service, with the Huna Tlingit, protects Glacier Bay’s glaciers, waters and wildlife. Visitors help by following the strict rules that protect whales and marine life (boats keep their distance and follow speed and approach limits), not disturbing seals on the icebergs or other wildlife, practicing bear safety and Leave No Trace if kayaking and camping, packing out everything, and respecting the Tlingit homeland. The whales, the seals, the recovering land and the glaciers are protected and sensitive. Protecting the waters, the wildlife and the wilderness sustains both the ecology and the grandeur of Glacier Bay.

Glacier Bay is cold, remote wilderness — the water is frigid (cold-water immersion is deadly), glaciers calve dangerous waves (keep boats and kayaks well back from glacier faces and floating ice), and weather is cool, wet and changeable. Sea kayaking is serious and for the prepared (cold water, tides, weather, remoteness). The shores are bear country. There are few services. Respect the frigid water, the calving glaciers and ice, the changeable weather, the bears and the remoteness of this wilderness.

There is no entrance fee, but vessel access (cruise ships, tour boats, private boats) is permit-limited to protect the bay — check requirements. Boats must follow whale-protection rules (distance, speed). Do not disturb seals on icebergs or other wildlife; keep well back from glacier faces. Kayakers/campers need to follow backcountry, bear-safety and Leave No Trace rules. Drones are prohibited. Pack out all trash. Respect the Tlingit homeland and any closures. Check the National Park Service for access, permits, rules and conditions before visiting.

The small gateway town of Gustavus, the Inside Passage and Southeast Alaska’s waters, the towns of Juneau and Haines/Skagway, and the Tongass rainforest lie near the park. Southeast Alaska and the Inside Passage define the region. Glacier Bay is a crown jewel of the Inside Passage, a centerpiece of a Southeast Alaska or cruise adventure, often experienced by cruise ship and easily combined with Juneau and the wider Inside Passage.

Experience Glacier Bay from the water — many visitors see it by cruise ship cruising up the bay to the calving tidewater glaciers, or fly/ferry to Gustavus to take the day tour boat from Bartlett Cove (watch for humpback whales, orcas, sea otters and seals on the ice). For adventure, sea kayak the fjords (serious wilderness — go prepared or with guides). Dress for cold, wet weather, keep well back from glacier faces and ice, follow whale-protection rules, and respect the Huna Tlingit homeland.