Juneau Icefield Research Program

I wanted to share some pictures from my son's summer program on an icefield that straddles the US and Canadian border.

I was really impressed by the landscape up there and hopefully you will enjoy them as well. These were shot with a cheap point and click camera so it's going to take some work to make them look presentable.

They are not all ready so I will add them as I work on them and bump the thread I guess.

This spot is the Gilkey Glacier and is the highlight of the trip. It sits above Lake Atlin on the Canadian side of the border.





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This was a 2-month program where the only form of transportation was on foot or on skis.




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Beneath a glacier. This is under the Mendenhall Glacier. Not a great image but it shows the wondrous world beneath all the ice.



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The ice goes on forever. This is the top - where glaciers are formed before starting their downward journey.




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Up so high you can touch the sky. Clouds at eye level without being in a plane.





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Looking out from Camp #10.




[Edited on 8-20-2013 by Skipjack Joe]

The Start

The story begins on the glaciers around Juneau where students learn techniques used later on. During this time they are conditioned for the long hikes ahead by walking 5-10 miles a day with their 50lb packs. We talked by phone these days and he was plenty tired but he had no idea what lay ahead.

Good stuff...can't wait to hear what your son has to contribute regarding climate change...he probably has more real world, scientific experience than most of us here.

Building up stamina by hiking in the woods around Juneau.

DK-unlike you I left my opinion out of this thread Well, outside of the cool part....

Then the ascent to the first glacier begins. They start at 9AM and stumble into camp at midnight.

Crossing streams with 'bridges'.

The foliage is still thick down here and spirits are high.

Crossing the stream again. This time without the aid of ropes.

Taking a break in an opening.

Ponds start to appear at the tree line.

No further images of the ascent until the following morning at Camp 17.

Juneau ice cap

The facilities were spartan.

Equipment shack. I just like this image, is all.

I think Alex was trying to tell me something here....

Spam and pilot bread can taste amazingly good though after a day on the field. He said they made spam pancakes. To each his own, I say.

There was no washer and dryer.

For whatever reason there seemed to be fond memories of their outhouses. These were lovingly attended to with artwork and clever messages. It was also a place where people socialized. They lived in such close quarters that nothing was uncomfortable. Each outhouse had it's own name.

A fairly large amount of time at the first camp was spent on safety.

What do you do when you've lost your footing and are careening down the side of a mountain of ice?

Well, I'm told you jam your ice axe into the moving ice which will turn you completely around facing uphill and slow your descent.

Those dots in the far distance are JIRPers practicing going down head first, face down or face up, and learning to stop.

This first camp is still within sight of civilization. Bald eagles make it to this area.

That's Juneau straight below. Auke Bay to the right where wilderone's ferry came in. Douglas Island past Juneau. Admiralty Island with no snow after that. And not sure what the snow peaked mountains are but the Pacific lies beyond them.

On top of the world.

Moving east to the next station.

Moody landscape -

Rope Team. Everyone is tied to each other as they approach an area with crevasses.

Taking a break without removing your skis.

Snow like white satin. A great day for shooting.

Overlooking the Gilkey Glacier.

Quote:

Originally posted by Skipjack Joe Overlooking the Gilkey Glacier.

Mass Balance Pit

Every student had a project he was involved in. But in addition to that the central study was determining the change in the size of the glacier. This was computed from the measurements of mass balance pits. These pits were typically dug to a depth of 12 meters and were dug at various specific spots on the icefield. Typically this work involved a 5 mile ski trip, followed by 3 hours of digging and then another 5 miles back to the cabin. Alex loved this work and volunteered to take another JIRPer's turn.

Core samples of the ice was taken each 10 cm from top to bottom. Each sample was weighed to determine the density of the ice. The holes you see behind are the locations where these samples were taken. The pit went down to the top of last years ice.





[Edited on 8-25-2013 by Skipjack Joe]

Here a core has been removed and is being passed below where it is extracted and weighed. Due to compaction the density will increase as you go deeper until solid blue ice is formed.

Dealing with blisters.

They call this a "whiteout". When the clouds come down on you on the icefield and you are on the ice, all landmarks are lost and there is a sense of being lost. All students were required to have compasses and know how to use them for such conditions.

Storm moving in from the Pacific.



[Edited on 8-25-2013 by Skipjack Joe]

Coming out to see the last glimpse of daylight.

Nunataks

Nunataks are isolated rocky outcroppings from the field of ice. They are significant in that most wildlife exists on these islands. Large nunataks had marmot and ptarmigans on them. The marmots were often heard whistling warnings to each other as the skiers approached. The ptarmigans were never seen but often heard at night. The nunataks on the icefield that were closer to Juneau even had bald eagles.

WOW --- almost surreal looking. How beautiful. Marmots are sure tough creatures to survive there!.

When we went to Alaska we visited the town of Chicken. According to the locals, there used to be so many ptarmigans in the area, that they were going to name the town Ptarmigan, but they could not agree on the spelling, so they named it Chicken. True or not, it was a good story.

Igor, all of these beautiful photos have taken us on a very, very special journey to a place most of us will never see. Many thanks to Alex and you.

The dominant life on the nunataks was lichens and bryophytes. Although some of them were very rich in flora.

Transects showed that each nunatak was poorest at its base and at it's top with the greatest richness and diversity in the middle.

Molly was one of the more interesting characters of the group. She was part of the botany team. I thought this was shot as some sort of gag but was told no. She is a soil biologist from Michigan and is recording the soil differentiation with depth on a nunatak.

Flowering plant among the bryophytes. Dwarf Lupine.I think these are mosses - help Mexitron.

Returning to camp.

Gilkey Glacier overlook.

The pros set up their cameras from an outlook.

Not all is great in paradise. Bivouacing at night on an icefield during a rain storm can't be a lot of fun.

Perhaps a bit of explanation about this picture is in order. Although they had cabins at each station on the ice field these were often too far apart to ski in one day. There were times when they slept in tents on the snow after a full day of trekking. However, they normally waited for the weather to clear before starting such a move.




[Edited on 9-1-2013 by Skipjack Joe]

When they arrived at camp 17 there was a lake nearby. You can see it at the bottom of the screen. A lake with icebergs.

One morning the lake was no longer there. The entire lake had collapsed and drained overnight. Presumably the water had melted a hole in the ice connecting it to a passage of flowing water beneath the ice cap.

The Hero Shot.

The approach to hero rock is to me more impressive than the rock itself.

Group Shot

There are many traditions that have developed over the years. One is to celebrate Christmas on July 25th. A Christmas Tree is assembled with skis by leaning them all towards to middle.

This image is the costume party that's traditionally done at camp 10. There are few materials to be had so people make do with what's available. The woman at the far right in the Indian Dance position is the same botanist Molly that we saw earlier.

Molly and Alex at the costume party. Molly made her skirt from a trash bag that each was to bring to keep things dry in the backpack. Alex's hanky is the head bandana for sunlight protection. I don't know where the jacket came from.

From within -

Quote:

Originally posted by Skipjack Joe From within -

Crevasse exploration.

Some are dry and others, like this one, have melted ice.

Within it's bowels:

Looking into it:

Looking out through similar opening:

Hiking out was treacherous. This is where the crampons were most useful.

Quote:

Originally posted by Skipjack Joe Hiking out was treacherous. This is where the crampons were most useful.

Timo,

Since you were following this thread, here is how it ends:

The guys celebrate the end of their journey by leaping into Lake Atlin.

Not hijacking the beautiful photos

..just wanted to show the area where they were taken