Kenai Fjords National Park

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You know what it's like in Alaska in August? Rainy.


Like many (really, all) of the Alaska parks, Kenai Fjords is not terribly accessible. And given that "fjords" is in the name, the proper way to see the park is by water. Unfortunately, the weather did not cooperate.

We didn't want to pay for the privilege of spending a rainy day out on the water, so we opted to do the park's single hiking trail instead. It wasn't much, but it was our only option.


The trail led to the Exit Glacier, or rather, to a view of Exit Glacier. It used to lead all the way to the glacier, but this glacier (like most in the state) has been receding at an alarming rate. As a result, the trail now stops well short of the actual glacier.

The glacier has pulled back hundreds of feet in 17 years

Fortunately the rain let up for the hike. After viewing the glacier, we headed down to the outwash plain, where the glacial runoff reaches the bottom of the mountain and turns into a river. The kids had a blast playing with chunks of glacial ice that had been deposited there.


We have heard wonderful things about the boat tours into the fjords, so this park is on our list to revisit should we ever have a chance to come back!
 

Location: Kenai Fjords National Park, Alaska, USA

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