“Even when you think you have your life all mapped out – things happen that shape your destiny in ways you might never have imagined.” – Deepak Chopra
This is a long view of Athabasca Glacier. While it looks pristine and smooth, it actually is, like most glaciers, strewn with physical obstacles – crevasses, moraines (unstable crushed rock debris from the glacier’s movement, unsuspecting looking deep pools of melted glacier ice and so on.
Climate change is conspicuous here. The front of the glacier, called the toe, is currently retreating between 30 to 80 feet every summer. In 1844, at the height of the Little Ice Age—a minor glacial advance recorded worldwide—the glacier was 5 miles long – now the glacier is at least a mile shorter. It was once thicker, too, as shown by the height of the lateral moraines on each side, as the ice was once level with the tops of those moraines.
Right now the maximum thickness is about 320 m, as measured two-thirds of the way up the glacier by radar- sounding. This part of the glacier’s bed is a large rock basin. As the front retreats into the hollow, we expect to see a lake appear there, between the ice and the shore, and get wider. Will the Athabasca Glacier melt away altogether? It’s possible. Some 5000 years ago, during a period not much warmer than the present, the middle of the Columbia Icefield was forest, not ice.
For now, we a still view the beauty of thus glacier – however due to the above, one must be very careful- even the experts have fallen. There are signs to beware and even getting to the glacier can be treacherous. This was sent to me by a Canadian friend AFTER visiting:
An Ice Explorer bus, which was carrying two dozen passengers, rolled for about 165 feet down a moraine embankment.
Here are two photos I took while we were ascending to give you a bit of the feel of the incline – and remember the trail was barely wide enough for the vehicle with no guardrails:
Honestly, the guides and drivers take every precaution, driving very slowly and warning us that until we get to the safe area, there is no talking on the vehicle, particularly to him.
However, one item seemed to me to be missing. Here is part of the itinerary I was given:
What isn’t mentioned either on my itinerary or by the guides taking us along the glacier “Where are my crampons???” Crampons are essential for balance and safety, particularly when the glacier is very firm or has thawed to leave no snow cover but just bare ice. I would have thought that the center right by the glacier would provide crampons automatically, but I was incorrect.
Here is the WTDGAP – I have my own crampons that I use when walking my dog in winter inclement weather when a sudden surge by Vee can put me on my butt,
Although I am world renowned for my OCD, particularly on planning items to bring on a journeys, I did not think to bering them for the above reasons. Usually my walking/hiking shoes provide a good deal of traction, however this time I packed these:
Smooth as ice. Minus my crampons and definitely wearing the wrong pair of walking shoes that had almost no grip, I was forced to employ a sideways crablike motion to get around a bit – and managed some photos (some are my friend Lenore’s,) along with this proof of being there:
One last WTDGAP moment that was also shoe related – a common theme during my trips-this time during my exit from the magical Canadian Rockies. At the airport I needed to remove my shoes for the security screening, which was a bit of a surprise, since more airports no longer require this process. No worries, I was wearing slip-ons and so dutifully added my shoes to the bin for scanning. However, when the bin reappeared, one shoe was missing and nowhere to be found.
After what seemed like hours, an airport agent found the errant show which had somehow escaped the bin and hid in the inner workings of the scanner. Fully shod I boarded the plane and with no further WTDGAP moments safely made my way back to NY.
As a beautiful farewell – here is a video of Lake Louise, as it looks today – enjoy!
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