portage glacier cruise
 

Has anyone gone on this one hour cruise? I had read that you could see calving from this glacier and was interested in whether it was worth it? We have time so that is not a problem. Marilee

Portage glacier has receded so much over the years that I would never bother with their "cruise" on what amounts to a large pond. When I was there a few years ago, very little of the glacier was even touching the water.

You'll have a much better chance of seeing glaciers calve on a longer cruise out of Whittier or Seward.

Agreed, global warming has really caused the Portage Glacier to recede. Years ago the icebergs practically touched the banks and now they are barely visible. There is a nice visitor center at Portage, easy hikes, and a few nice, small camp grounds. If you want to see calving glaciers you would be better off going out of Whittier or Seward as the prior post recommended.

what tour out of whittier would you recommend for seeing the glaciers?Thanks. Marilee

We took Phillips 26 Glacier Cruise out of Whittier in August 2001 and it was great. We saw several glaciers calving. Check out their website.

I've got a couple of photos of Portgage Glacier from 2005 at this site:

http://www.worldisround.com/articles/209893/index.html

You can judge for yourself.

The portage glacier still looks pretty nice dwooden...?? Unless it has receded that much in the last two years. I loved your pictures..can't wait to go! Marilee

Is the Portage Glacier worth seeing? Or has it all melted.

I enjoy the Portage Glacier cruise - I've been on it several times and think it offers great "bang for your buck". The photos at http://www.youralaskacruise.com/glaciers/portage.html might help you decide.

Murray

We went on the Portage Glacier tour in summer 2007. It turned out to be the glacier highlight of our trip as Portage glacier calved while the boat was right in front of it. It was a thrilling experience. The Portage boat went much closer to the glacier than the glacier tours we took out of Seward and Whittier. The Portage park ranger guides were very enthusiastic, friendly, and knowledgeable (significantly more so than the guides on the Whittier and Seward cruises). I think the Portage glacier tour is worthwhile if you have the time.

Portage lake from the parking lot, 1978(?)

http://gardyloo.us/portageglaciersm.jpg

Took the Portage Glacier cruise six years ago and thought it was worth the time and reasonable expense. It was our only glacier experience at the time (at the suggestion of the Ranger on board we visited another that was a short drive away, where you could literally walk up to it and see markings showing how much it had receded over the years -- can't remember the name!). We are headed back in August and tacking on a cruise, so we'll experience much more this time -- but for first timers, Portage was fine.

Can you kayak or canoe in Portage Glacier area? Where can you kayak and see ice floes in the water and glacier close-up? I know there are longer trips in Seward but those cost quite a bit -- $300 - $400 for a day trip. Anything in Seward or Whittier or Juneau or Anchorage that you can have that kind of experience for a bit less?

Thanks!