Alaskan Glaciers Aren't Aging Well

Sad to See!

Photo by NOAA on Unsplash

I recently saw a natural wonder that isn’t aging well and wanted to share it with you.

I looked forward to the Alaskan cruise because Dan and I went on a similar trip in 2001. I loved it. My favorite part of that trip was Glacier Bay. It was magnificent beyond words - especially the Margerie Glacier. We took this picture at the time.

So, I wanted to see my “old friend” again. Glacier Bay was magnificent, with ice chunks, bald eagles, and rocky points.

But I didn’t recognize Margerie - when we got there. Twenty-two years later, this is what I saw.

As the Giving Compass website says

The story of Alaska’s glacial retreat is written across the landscape. Melting has left these slow-moving rivers of ice, while still spectacular, much diminished. And it is forcing us to think differently about them.

I visited Juneau but not the Mendenhall glacier this time. The VOA website says

climate change has caused the ice to melt and the glacier to retreat. That means it is losing more snow and ice than it gains. Researchers from the University of Alaska, Southeast, say the Mendenhall glacier retreated about 800 meters between 2007 and 2021.

This video tells a grim story that occurred in Juneau recently.

Common sense tells me that if we are to age well, our environment has to age well, too.

If you want to contribute to my work,  consider donating to the Alzheimer’s Association. This link takes you to their website. The choice is yours.