I will begin, by saying when I first booked this tour, I was apprehensive on the price. Thinking that it was going to be a great excursion, but not worth what they were asking for. I was WRONG!!!!!!. Our tour guides were Mo and Ryan, I can not say enough about these two individuals. Both were beyond pleasant, entertaining and knowledgeable. Ryan, is such a great young man, myself being a very recent retired firefighter/paramedic and his aspirations or at least interest in that field made for great conversations. Mo, also was very wonderful, always with a smile on her face a good conversationalist and just an Awesome young woman. I say this because I believe the entire trip was enhanced by these two individuals being there.
The gearing up for the trip went well, and then it was time for the meeting with the canoe. We piled and and began our trek across the lake, the rowing was fun, and just being on the lake was beyond beautiful, all this while we were in a constant drizzle with only a brief periods of repose from the drops. Words can not describe, the view while going around the bend in the lake and the Mendenhall Glacier comes in to full view in all its glory, as it takes center stage from everything that you are surrounded by, even the waterfall that is there at the bend. We paddled ( I should get kudos for that word as Mo continously told me we were not rowing as I wanted to keep saying that ). to the landing area, walked through the rocky area until we got to the ice itself. We then put on our crampons for the exploration of the glacier. Unfortunatley there were no caves to view at this time, but being able to walk down some creavaces and hills and on to the blue ice was amazing. We actually were able to drink water straight from the glacier itself, and let me tell you no matter what bottled water you find yourself drinking, it does not hold a candle to the clean, cool and freshness that this was. After about a little over an hour of hiking the glacier it was time to return, my group of four people ( son, daughter, and daughters boyfriend ) wished we could stay longer and didnt want to leave. It was just that gorgeous nd breathtaking. We got back into the canoe, and paddled back, this time while going around the bend we were completely emmersed in fog, and you couldnt see 10 feet in front of the tip of the canoe, but the ever prescence of Mo and Ryan were able to guide us back to our launch point in safety and yes with a sing along to boot.
This was an amazing experience, awestriking and beautiful. I would definatley do this again, and would encourage anyone thinking about doing this to not walk but run to sign up. This was an unforgettable trip and you will thank me for nudging you to take the chance and go.