This Awe-Inspiring Alaskan Destination Boasts The Largest Tidewater Glacier In America

Alaska may be known as the "Last Frontier," but it could easily have the nickname of the "Glacier State," considering it's one of the most glacier-filled regions in the world, with this type of icy terrain covering about 23,000 square miles of the state. But among the thousands of glaciers that populate the northernmost, westernmost, and easternmost state in the United States, one stands out. The Hubbard Glacier is an awe-inspiring behemoth, stretching across an area 76 miles long, 7 miles wide, and 600 feet deep, about half of which is visible above the water. In fact, it begins from Mount Logan in Canada and reaches down through the Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve to Alaska's Disenchantment Bay, making it the largest tidewater glacier in North America.

Named after Gardiner Greene Hubbard, a founder of the National Geographic Society, the Hubbard Glacier is a must-visit destination if only to see it calving. No, that doesn't mean that it's birthing baby cows; rather, tidewater glaciers experience the process of large pieces of the terminus, or end, breaking off and crashing into the water, leaving behind icebergs. The Hubbard Glacier is the largest calving glacier in North America, and watching this dramatic natural process is a remarkable sight, one you can experience from a safe distance on your trip to the icy wonderland that is Alaska.

Besides its scale and calving frequency, the Hubbard Glacier has something else to set it apart: unlike most of the glaciers in the world, it's advancing, rather than retreating, which has given it the nickname the "Galloping Glacier." This is especially notable considering that Alaska's glaciers are melting more than other places around the world, since the region's temperature is warming two to three times faster than the global average due to climate change. Not so with the Hubbard Glacier, which has advanced so much in recent years that it actually dammed the Russell Fjord in 1986 and 2002, briefly turning it into a lake. However, Hubbard is much more difficult to reach than some of Alaska's other, more accessible glacier lakes. 

Glaciers are made when snow falls faster than it melts, creating a dense and tightly packed formation that glides down-valley. Glaciers can advance or retreat depending on whether the snow accumulation or melt (also known as ablation) is higher. Not surprisingly, due to the overall trend of global warming, most glaciers are melting faster than they can grow. 

This makes a visit to the Hubbard Glacier perhaps even more pressing, as it's a representation of a world that's rapidly transforming and disappearing. Despite the fact that it frequently loses mass by calving, the Hubbard Glacier's calving process has more to do with its own geometry than environmental changes, so it's able to continue advancing since it's gaining more snow rather than losing it. 

Due to its position, the best way to see the Hubbard Glacier is by boat. Many cruise companies offer excursions to take a more up-close look at the glacier, and you may even get to see it calving and creating icebergs in real time, depending on the time of year that you decide to take your Alaskan cruise. Summer is typically the best time to see the calving process, due to the warmer temperatures that allow the ice to break off. Note that ships must keep some distance from the glacier because of this dramatic sight. 

As you approach the glacier, you'll see how its light blue terminus strikingly contrasts with the deep blue waters of Disenchantment Bay and the snowy peaks of the St. Elias mountain range behind it. That blue color, by the way, has to do with the refraction of white light. Its red wavelengths get absorbed by the white snow, which reflects blue ones back, making it seem like a glacier is "glowing with light that came from within itself," as John Muir wrote during his seminal visit to Glacier Bay in 1879 (via Sierra Club).

It's also possible to see the glacier with a private charter boat, which departs from Yakutat, the closest town to the glacier. There are a few companies in Yakutat that offer half-day cruises to explore the Hubbard Glacier. This small, remote town is accessible via direct, hour-long flights from Juneau or Cordova, as well as non-direct ones from Anchorage. If taking a ship to see the Hubbard Glacier, be sure to keep an eye out for sea life as well; Disenchantment Bay is home to orcas, humpback whales, and seals.