Glacier parks

"One to two hours, my ass!" I grumbled about the young Parks Canada ranger who had told me that Thechàl Dhâl (Sheep Mountain) Route was just an hour or two additional hike from the end of the Sheep Creek Trail. I huffed and puffed as I had to stop every 20 steps or so up the mountain in order to catch my breath. "I better see some freakin' Dall sheep on this mountain," I angrily muttered to myself as I slowly made myself upward.

Getting to Kluane National Park, Yukon, Canada

Located in the vast wilderness of Yukon, Kluane is a massive 22,013 km². Its grand landscape is jaw-droppingly stunning with intimidating mountains, spectacular glaciers, raging rivers, and impressive wildlife. Parks Canada manages the park with Champagne and Aishihik First Nations. 

Most of Kluane is either inaccessible or can only be explored through backcountry adventures. Although a smaller portion, it is thankfully also possible to experience the wonders of Kluane through the "front-country", i.e., either by the Haines Road (Highway 3) or the Alaska Highway.  

I travelled to Kluane by first flying into Yukon Territory's sleepy capital Whitehorse (population 28,000). After couple of days in Whitehorse, I drove to a small village of Haines Junction (population 688), where there are a few motels. Haines Junction would be my base for exploring Kluane. During my time in Kluane, I went on three hikes: (1) Auriol Trail, (2) King's Throne Trail and Route, and (3) Sheep Creek …

Lockdown may be over, but self-isolation continues. At this time what can be more relaxing than reminiscing about one of my favorite trips of all time? (Please note: Info contained here is 14 years old.) 

Upset that I was not invited to Bill Gates' 50th birthday party thrown by Paul Allen (the other founder of Microsoft) aboard his luxury yacht cruising the Glacier Bay National Park in 2005, I set out to visit the park in June 2006 by myself. It was the only year between 2000 and 2015 when I did not come to Europe and decided to finish off the continental USA. I was living in Los Angeles at that time (and moved to Europe in 2015). 

The Panhandle section of Alaska is in my and many others' mind the single most beautiful area of the USA but also one of the rainiest. So I decided to make this trip in June, the least rainy month of the year in this area. It was the right decision to make, as I was totally lucked out that during the one week in the Panhandle it did not rain once. Even the locals were surprised how lucky I was. 

My first visit to Alaska was to the Denali National Park back in 1991. This time I took the so-called Alaska Marine Highway, which is a ferry service running from Bellingham near Seattle through Juneau, Alaska's capital, in the Panhandle to Whittier near Anchorage, and vice-versa. AMH is …

Glacier Bay--pristine, vast, cold, peaceful, and amazing. The size and scale of the glaciers is astounding. I saw it on a cold, overcast May day from a cruise ship and wished I had the opportunity to see it both in (slightly) warmer weather and from the ground. Definitely worth the trip, and I'll be returning in the future.

These parks are, in my opinion, quite different from each other so I don’t really understand why they are included together, except for the fact that they are beautiful nature areas in the Northwest.

My visit to Kluane was just very short and I’ve only seen a tiny bit of this huge park, but it’s definitely worth the long long drive up north. It’s impossible to capture the true beauty of this immense rugged landscape with high wild mountains so you have to go see for yourself.

The deep forests of the Westcoast of Alaska are worth a visit too, Wrangell-St. Elias is great, but you better make sure you take good rain gear with you because there’s a reason why there is so much RAINforest…

This must be one of the largest sites in area in the world. Glacier Bay is best seen from a boat. Even the view from a large cruise ship is unforgettable. An echoing rifle shot crack of the glaciers calving warns you of a giant splash and sea otters and whales can be seen from the waters.

Tatshenshini-Alsek doesn't have many roads but is full of wildlife, wide open spaces without even a power line or a road to spoil the view. Wrangell St. Elias has some of the largest mountains in North America as well as a historic abandoned copper mine.

You need at least 2 weeks to see this site properly. Pack warm!