How to Get There

Overview

Exit Glacier is a glacier derived from the Harding Icefield in the Kenai Mountains of Alaska and one of Kenai Fjords National Park's major attractions. It is one of the most accessible valley glaciers in Alaska and is a visible indicator of glacial recession due to climate change. Exit Glacier retreated approximately 187 feet (57 m) from 2013 to 2014 and park scientists continue to monitor and record the glacier's accelerating recession.

It received its name for serving as the exit for the first recorded crossing of the Harding Icefield in 1968.

Access

The Exit Glacier is especially notable for being a drive up glacier (similar to the Mendenhall Glacier of Juneau). A spur road off the Seward Highway leads to the only road accessible portion of the Kenai Fjords National Park. A system of hiking trails lead to the terminus of the glacier and up to the Harding Icefield itself. Although it is one of the Harding Icefield's smaller glaciers, it is one of the most visited because of its easy accessibility and abundant hiking trails around and above the glacier. Exit Glacier is accessible year-round. Upon the arrival of snow, usually in mid-November, the road is closed to cars but open to a wide range of winter recreation: from snow machines, dogsleds, fat-tire bicycles, and cross-country skiers.

This article uses material from the Wikipedia article "Exit Glacier", which is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share-Alike License 3.0