Portage Glacier. For views of Portage Glacier itself, nothing beats the Portage Pass trail (seriously, nothing beats it – it’s the only trail that gives a view of the glacier). Turn left at the Portage Glacier Cafe (401 Portage Lake Loop) to purchase tickets. It was a beautiful and educational one hour trip across the lake to get a close-up view of Portage Glacier… Portage Glacier: Great Drive To Portage Glacier - See 1,025 traveler reviews, 548 candid photos, and great deals for Girdwood, AK, at Tripadvisor. Portage Glacier is a must-see for any first-time visitor to Anchorage. Back to Table of Contents. Portage Glacier in located in Chugach National Forest and is one of Alaska’s most visited attractions. I have yet to meet anyone who denies that Portage Glacier is melting, and melting rapidly. Portage Glacier is one of Alaska's most visited attractions due to its close proximity to Anchorage. Learn more about glaciers near Anchorage and how to see them here. Portage Glacier Cruises, Anchorage Picture: Portage Glacier - Check out Tripadvisor members' 20,528 candid photos and videos. Portage is known as one of the younger towns in the Region, but its history goes back a long way to the early days of settlement, further still to Native American builders, and back to a bygone geological age that has left its mark on the area. A t the head of Portage Valley, about fifty miles south of Anchorage, at the end of scenic Turnagain Arm, lies the Begich, Boggs Visitor Center and the beautiful Portage Glacier. Tours to the Portage Glacier typically include a one-hour cruise. A deep, cold lake to paddle. Take a left on Portage Glacier Road (milepost 78.9) approximately 48 miles out of Anchorage. The glacier was named by Thomas Corwin Mendenhall of the U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey in 1898. Photo Plate. Portage Glacier Cruises: Portage Glacier - Tour with Gray Line of Alaska-excellent - See 201 traveller reviews, 260 candid photos, and great deals for Anchorage, AK, at Tripadvisor. It is also a part of the Chugach National Forest. Even though we know on some level that glaciers move–and are moving–we seem to instinctively treat them like stationary things. Portage Valley is home to some of the most mesmerizing and most accessible glaciers in Alaska. The glacier is tucked around the bend of a mountain, and isn’t visible during the walk across the lake. You can still see the glacier, but you have to work for it. This Glacier is in located in Chugach National Forest and access is via the Seward Highway, about 50 miles south of Anchorage. Also, visit the popular attractions … A small section in the center has exposed bedrock but much of the glacier face is still in the water and extends down more than 100 feet into Portage … Portage Glacier. Most tours include round-trip transportation from Anchorage. The Center offers opportunities to learn about the Chugach National Forest and glaciers with fun and interactive exhibits. Fact Sheet 2006-3141. Click each photo to enlarge in a new window. The surveyors had to travel over the very top of the mountain along the north side of the glacier and Portage Lake at an elevation of 3,000 feet. In my photos, sadly there is no object for scale, but I’d estimate that the terminal portion of Portage Glacier is at least 100 feet tall. A part of the Chugach National Forest, Portage Glacier is situated in the state of Alaska in the United States. However, Portage Glacier can no longer be viewed from there. Anchorage Tourism; Anchorage Hotels; Anchorage Bed and Breakfast; Anchorage Vacation Rentals; Anchorage Vacation Packages; Flights to Anchorage; Anchorage Restaurants Access is via the Seward Highway, about 50 miles south of Anchorage. Driving Directions to Portage Glacier: Take the Seward Highway south from Anchorage. The Begich,Boggs Visitor Center was built by the U.S. Forest Service in 1986. This fact sheet discusses the retreat patterns of the Portage Glacier, Alaska. Unfortunately you can no longer see the glacier from the highway and the only ways to get close to the actual glacier are by boat across Portage Lake or by taking the train (or your vehicle) through the tunnel to Whittier. Be sure to dress in layers; it can get chilly out on the water. Now located south of the Portage Lake, the glacier is known to have been filling the entire Portage … … I make the final decision as I drive past the end of the lake and see low waves with smooth surfaces, no riffles dancing around. Learn a little more with five fun facts you may not have known about Portage! Seracs and subglacial stream, terminus of Portage Glacier. Portage Glacier is in the corner of Portage Lake about an hours drive from Anchorage. It stretches over a length of nearly 10 km, but recent stats show that it is retreating. Catch some hiking trails from the Begich, Boggs Visitor Center for a chance to see scenic vistas, but don’t expect to see the glacier here. One of the most visited glaciers in the Chugach National Forest, an hour (50 miles) south of Anchorage off the Seward Highway. Portage Pass Trail: If instead of stopping at lake, you continue on the Portage Glacier Road, close to Whittier is the Portage Pass Trailhead. The day long hike will take you to an elevation with incredible views of the Portage Glacier. Portage Glacies formerly extended from the mountains to a few miles from the highway to the Kenai Peninsula. The Begich, Boggs Visitor Center is your gateway to the glaciers. The valley's crown jewel, Portage Glacier, stands ten stories tall and nearly a mile long. USGS Home Contact USGS Search USGS. Portage Lake is deep enough to submerge an 80-story building. The Portage Glacier Access Road winds about five miles from the highway, past a series of campgrounds and to the impressive Begich, Boggs Visitor Center. One of the most visited glaciers in Alaska, Portage completely covered its lake and reached into the valley in the 1800s. The fact that so many people casually put themselves in life-or-death danger at Portage suggests that our intuition and common sense are poor guides around glaciers. For comparison in the 1940s the terminus of the glacier … U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. If you’re up for more than the four-mile round trip through Portage Pass, Chugach National Forest has plenty more trails available, all of which will leave you tired, but not exhausted, cold, and depleted. Portage Glacier, located within the Chugach National Forest, once filled the entire 14-mile stretch of the Portage Valley, shaping its very landscape. Portage Glacier, one of multitudes of glaciers in Chugach National Forest, remains a big tourist draw even though visitors now have to take a boat ride across Portage Lake to see its face. Portage Glacier Facts and Travel Tips. The glacier is one of Alaska's most frequently visited tourist destinations. Portage Glacier & Portage Lake. Portage Glacier; Portage Glacier. There are only a few ways to see Portage Glacier during the summer, due to the fact that Portage Lake is open water during this time. In fact, Portage Glacier had receded so far that the route across the glacier from Whittier to Portage Valley was no longer usable. You can get up close to the glacier by taking a boat across Portage Lake, or paddling across in a kayak. Visit Portage Glacier During Summer. Took a ride on the Ptarmigan on Portage Lake, Memorial Day 2019. Portage Glacier is another type of mountain glacier and is located in Anchorage and Kenai Peninsula Borough, Alaska, United States, and is six miles in length. Originally known as Sitaantaagu ("the Glacier Behind the Town") or Aak'wtaaksit ("the Glacier Behind the Little Lake") by the Tlingits, the glacier was named Auke (Auk) Glacier by naturalist John Muir for the Tlingit Auk Kwaan (or Aak'w Kwaan) band in 1888. The glacier is “alive” and on the move. Portage Glacier is one of the most visited attractions in Alaska. Facts About Portage Glacier. Cruising across Portage Lake on the mv Ptarmigan, you'll stand just 300 yards from a relic of the Ice Age and watch for fractures of ice break off and crash into the water below. Photographs from the U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey in 1914 show the terminus three miles farther out, with what is now a lake unexposed. Visit the sheer, awesome face of a mighty Alaska glacier located just an hour from Anchorage. Portage Glacier Visitor Center has lots of information about the area and plenty of Portage Glacier Facts but we skipped all that and only cared about seeing the natural glacial blues with our own eyes. Atop the lake was a layer of snow with a straight trail packed hard by … Portage Glacier may be hard to see but it's much easier to see where it has been.In the last few years the glacier face has begun retreating from the lake it created. It’s hard to get a sense of how large even the current day version of Portage Glacier is. Travel 5 miles to fork in road; take the right-hand fork and travel a 1/2 mile. Portage Glacier has receded miles, though the last handful of years it has advanced and receded alternately, holding its ground. Portage Glacier sits at the edge of Portage Lake in the Chugach National Forest. Mendenhall Glacier located in Mendenhall Valley, about 12 miles from downtown Juneau in the southeast area of Alaska. In recent years it has been melting, receding. 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