The Juneau Icefield is an ice-covered area located just north of Juneau, Alaska. It stretches north into British Columbia and covers an area of 3,900 square kilometers (1,500 square miles). The icefield spans 140 kilometers (87 miles) from north to south and 75 kilometers (47 miles) from east to west within the Coast Range. Many glaciers begin here, including the Mendenhall Glacier and the Taku Glacier. Over 40 large valley glaciers and 100 smaller glaciers are found on the icefield. The icefield is a popular tourist destination. Visitors often travel by helicopter to walk on the ice, which ranges in depth from 240 to 1,400 meters (790 to 4,590 feet), and to see the large, wet crevasses.

Glaciers

Eight kilometers to the north, the Herbert Glacier has moved back 540 meters (0.34 miles), the Eagle Glacier 700 meters (0.43 miles), the Gilkey Glacier 3,500 meters (2.2 miles), and the Llewellyn Glacier 2,800 meters (1.7 miles). On the south side of the icefield, the Norris Glacier has moved back 1,740 meters (1.08 miles), the East Twin Glacier 1,100 meters (0.68 miles), and the West Twin Glacier 570 meters (0.35 miles). Only the Taku Glacier has moved forward. Surveys show the Taku Glacier is one of the deepest glaciers studied in the sub-temperate icefields, with a thickness of nearly 1,370 meters (4,490 feet).

History

In 1890, John Muir observed a glacier that was moving forward and had a large area where ice broke off into the water. By 1963, the glacier had moved 5.6 kilometers (3.5 miles) forward. In 1948, the Taku Fjord was completely covered with sediment from the glacier, and the glacier no longer broke off pieces of ice. From 1948 to 1986, the glacier gained more ice than it lost, which caused it to keep moving forward. From 1987 to 2009, the glacier lost slightly more ice than it gained, but this was not enough to stop its movement. If this pattern continues, the glacier’s movement will eventually slow.

The icefield, like many glaciers in the area, reached its largest size around the year 1700 and has been shrinking since. Much of the icefield is located within the Tongass National Forest. Since 1948, the Juneau Icefield Research Program has studied the glaciers on the Juneau Icefield. On the west side of the icefield, the end of the Mendenhall Glacier has moved back more than 700 meters (0.43 miles) from 1946 to 2009.

Peaks

Important mountains on the Juneau Icefield include Devils Paw, Nelles Peak, Emperor Peak, The Snow Towers, Taku Towers, Camp 15 Peak, and the Mendenhall Towers.

Gallery

• The Juneau Icefield includes Devils Paw and Nelles Peak
• The Spirit Range is located above the Juneau Icefield
• There are several notable peaks within the icefield
• A view of the Juneau Icefield to the northwest