Day 6 begins in Seward for the morning, and ends at Anchorage, our last stop, for the evening.
My brother and I visited the Alaska Sealife Center, which is an the aquarium and aviary. Much like the Wildlife Conservation Center we visited on Day 3,
“The Alaska SeaLife Center is the only facility in Alaska that combines a public aquarium with marine research, education, and wildlife response.
While primarily dedicated to marine research and education, the Center is the only permanent marine mammal rescue and rehabilitation facility in the state.”
I really appreciate centers like this, because they provide normal people to see animals and wildlife up close, study them scientifically to further our research knowledge about animals. However, the reason why I these centers the most is because many of the animals we see inside the SeaLife center are rescued injured or orphaned wildlife that receive rehabilitation at the center.
After some gift-shopping and lunch with the family, it was time to say goodbye to the pretty little town of Seward.
And on to our last stop (where we began): Anchorage.
Google maps: Seward to Anchorage.
Anchorage is a very pretty city to photography because even though there are a lot of buildings that make for good “cityscapes,” There is often a view of a mountain in the distance.
Sleeping little bird! Aww 🙂
My brother’s freshman college roommate happens to live in Alaska, and was in Anchorage, so we had dinner with him and my brother was able to catch up with an old friend. It was also a plus because he knew the city well.
My brother and his old college roommate.
By this time, I was pretty burnt out from all the traveling. However, I did for sure enjoy seeing the puffins, and Anchorage is a very pretty city. Decently quiet as well! Just one more day left!
Day 0: 30 Hour TripDay 1: Denali National ParkDay 2: Rain in TalkeetnaDay 3: Talkeetna to Seward, and Views Along the WayDay 4: Cruise Through the Gulf of AlaskaAlaska SeaLife Center in Seward, AK
Day 5, our second day in Seward, we went to see glaciers again, the day before on water, but this time on land! We visited Exit Glacier in Kenai Fjords National Park. It’s a shorter and accessible trail, so pretty much anyone could walk the path and see it 🙂
Puddlegram! Exit Glacier reflected in a puddle.My family enjoying the view of the glacier!
The sad thing is, Exit Glacier is, well, exiting! The picture below is the one of the closest vantage points the park’s trail takes us to view the glacier. In 2010, the glacier was much larger. I would have been able to touch the glacier from where I took this photo only 6 years ago. 100 years ago, the glacier, the mile trail we walked was essentially all glacier.I essence, the glaciers in Alaska have all been slowly shrinking since the end of the earth’s ice age, but in just the last decade, it’s been shrinking faster and faster, and Exit Glacier here is an up close and personal example of one of them.
This picture shows how far the glacier had been just back in 2010.
If that picture doesn’t scare you, how about this one? I took it from farther back where the glacier reached back in 2005, just eleven years ago (I was only ten years old, and I just turned 21 recently). I also added an indicator below to show where I was standing for the photo I took above of the 2010 sign.
The glacier’s size back in 205. In 11 years, the glacier has shrunk from 2005 sign to the one you see in the photo now. The “2010” arrow points to were I took the photo above this one- how large the glacier was in 2010.
What were you doing in 2005? 2010? Comment below 🙂
In the infographic below, Kenai Fjords National Park scientists also say that the glacier used to be much larger, and has been shrinking and melting more and more every year.
Information and graphic in this photo belong to Kenai Fjords National Park.A mini-water fall within a crevice of the glacier.
My brother made an extra climb up closer to the glacier, and he got to touch it! Check out his Instagram post below, and follow him @timclau 🙂
A few non-glacier pictures taken along the trail. Cool to think that all the trees, rivers, flowers, and earth used to be frozen less than a century ago!
(Long Exposure) – river we had to cross to see the glacier.(Macro) small flower that was along the trail to see Exit Glacier
We ended the day by going back to Seward and taking a stroll around Seward. Turns our there is large RV park by the bay, and lots of families either camping out or living in their RVs. It’s a beautiful place to be in the summer.
RVs and/or Campers around a fire.The Seward Beach.
I hope you enjoyed these photos of Exit Glacier and the Seward Bay. However, I want to challenge you to educate yourself on the warming of Alaska. I know there is lots of controversy about the politics of global warming and climate change. However, I’m not asking you to look into politics, but to check out and see if beautiful natural wonders of Alaska-its glaciers for example-may soon cease to exist. Also, with glaciers gone, cute little tourist towns like Seward may lose its large amount of tourism, which is important for the town’s economic well-being (when no tourists come in the coldest months of winter, many Seward residents and workers actually leave for a break because there is no work for them).
The Natural Resources Defense Council, or the NRDC, a non-profit that aims to protect the earth’s natural ecosystem and the animals, plants, and humans within it. They have fought for clean water in Flint, Michigan and have campaigned against the antibiotics found in Kentucky Fried Chicken’s poultry. These are just two of the many projects they’re working on- and they reported the day I arrived back in Jersey that Alaska is having the hottest year ever recorded. Check out their tweet below:
You can take what I say with a grain of salt. I’m not trying to convince you to believe everything I say, but I do hope that you would at least educate yourselves about the climate change in Alaska if you have not already. The unfortunate conclusion is that in just a couple of years, kids will never be able to see glaciers in Alaska anymore.
Soon there might not a be a glacier for us to see anymore 😦
But two truths are clear: 1. Alaska is having the hottest year that’s ever been recorded. 2 This glacier, Exit Glacier, has been shrinking faster and faster by the decade, and so are the other glaciers in Alaska.
For me, that’s enough reason to start demanding climate action when I can, and having a different perspective on how I treat my earth’s ecosystem- even back home in the suburbs of New Jersey.
What do you think of this “warming of Alaska”? I’d like to hear your opinion if you would like to share; comment below!
Thanks for reading! Be sure to check my past photo blog posts about Alaska by clicking on the images below 🙂
Day 0: 30 Hour TripDay 1: Denali National ParkDay 2: Rain in TalkeetnaDay 3: Talkeetna to Seward, and Views Along the WayDay 4: Cruise Through the Gulf of Alaska
![Alaska Day 5: Exit[ing] Glacier.](https://matthewlauphotography.files.wordpress.com/2016/06/featureimage.jpg?w=825&h=510&crop=1)
Matthew Lau 