little icebergs

My girl and I explored the West Glacier beach at Mendenhall Lake yesterday. There are so many brilliant blue icebergs on the lake right now. I actually really love to experience the glacier area when it is dark and stormy out because the ice really pops in the ominous lighting. It’s really quite spectacular and makes for a striking scene with all the contrast. And check out all the snow creeping down the mountains! It’s quickly moving from autumn to winter. Can’t you feel the chill in these pictures?

Snow-Capped Bullard Mountain Reflection

The Medenhall Glacier is fed by the Juneau Icefield (which also feeds some of the other glaciers you’ve seen here, like Herbert Glacier). You can think of the glaciers like frozen rivers, always slowly flowing and moving down between the mountains. Sadly, most of the glaciers from the icefield are retreating faster than they are advancing, due to global warming, and soon they will disappear from view. We have photos taken of this glacier from when we moved here originally in 1997 and it looks completely and frighteningly different. These small lake icebergs are formed when the glacier calves and pushes ice out in to the lake. I feel like I wrote about this before… but I can’t remember so forgive me if I’m being redundant :)

Natural Ice Sculpture (do you see the bird taking off in flight?)

The reflections in the lake were amazing. The grey sky is really beautiful in it’s own right. I mean, who wants blue sky all the time? It would make my moods so predictable.

Bird asked me to wade in the water with my big rubber boots to pull some ice to shore for us to see. They are so crystal clear and come in the most beautiful, organic forms.

Ice and glacial silt clouds in the water. Silt is apparently really good for mud baths (see below!).

At the end of our icy adventure, we came upon this bald eagle. He was such a ham for the camera–too bad I had on my 50mm lens, because he was so close to us! He was also so extremely covered in mud… a real dirty bird. I am guessing he must have been bathing in the mineral-rich mud around the lake.

He was super chatty, which kind of unnerved me. I got the sense he was sending out some kind of warning. Then he startled and took off. It made me feel like we were being watched by a big scary bear or wolf, a feeling I don’t often get… time to leave!

Bird and I had lots of fun. The sun is making a rare appearance here today. Time to get back outside! Until next time!