Alaska Cruise in Juneau, sightseeing Glacier Gardens, Nugget Falls and the Mendenhall Glacier

 This was my husband's and my second visit to Juneau, Alaska. We took an Alaskan Land and Sea Cruise of Alaska in 2019 and visited the city then — click here --- to read that post. On that trip, we visited the Mendenhall Glacier  Visitor Center and enjoyed a delicious outdoor Salmon Bake lunch afterward.

On this visit with our family, we again all took different excursions. My husband and I chose a two-part tour beginning in the beautiful Glacier Gardens in Juneau, Alaska.

Glacier Gardens is full of unique Flower Towers — stunning upside-down trees adorned with vibrant flower baskets, created from storm-felled trees by founder Steve Bowhay.

The Bowhay family has welcomed visitors since 1998 to explore the lush surroundings of their botanical paradise and the Tongass National Forest. Their tours offer an unforgettable journey through 50 acres of natural wonder, blending manicured gardens, old-growth forest, and sweeping mountain views, from the comfort of their guided, covered golf carts.

Our tour guide told us that in 1984, heavy rain and snow deposits caused a landslide that demolished much of Thunder Mountain, uprooting nearly everything and destroying one of the main streams. In 1985, Steve and Cindy Bowhay bought up nearly 50 acres of the destroyed land to reclaim it. As part of a "happy accident," Steve took downed trees and buried the tops in the ground, which placed their roots up in the air to form a basket to cradle colorful, trailing flowers.

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Among the other flowers that flourish in this unique botanical garden are rhododendrons, azaleas, Japanese maples, devil’s club, elderberry shrubs, and Alaska's flower, the blue Forget-Me-Not.

The large covered golf cart took our tour group up a total of 600 feet to the top of Thunder Mountain through a section of the Tongass National Forest of majestic Western Hemlock and Sitka Spruce trees.

It was fascinating to view the plant growth in this forest of skunk cabbage, lichen, moss, ferns, and other forest floor growth. Our expert tour guide also shared fascinating stories about the history, ecology, and wildlife of the area.

 When we reached the top of the mountain, we were able to get out of the golf cart and walk over to a viewing platform overlooking a part of Juneau. The weather was foggy, so visibility wasn't the best.

At the end of the tour, we visited the Glacial Gardens Visitor and Event Center. It was full of the most gorgeous and colorful hanging baskets and flower sculptures.

We really enjoyed our tour of Glacier Gardens and highly recommend it if you visit Juneau during the summer.

The next part of our excursion was a visit to the Mendenhall Glacier. 

The glacier is a 13-mile ribbon of ice that flows from the Juneau Ice Field. which is a 1,500 square mile frozen plateau that feeds a total of 38 major glaciers. The Juneau Ice Field is the fifth-largest ice field in North America and is a leftover from the last ice age. Mendenhall Glacier has been in a period of retreat. In fact, there were various markers that were placed on the lakeshore, and in the visitor center, that showed how the glacier at one time covered those areas in as little as 60 - 90 years ago!

Since we spent a lot of time at the Mendenhall Glacier Visitor Center on our last visit, this time we decided to take the two-mile round-trip hike to see the nearby spectacular Nugget Falls!

This spectacular waterfall plunges about 377 feet down the rugged mountainside into Mendenhall Lake, about three-quarters of a mile south of the active face of Mendenhall Glacier. Powered by meltwater runoff from the hanging Nugget Glacier

A short video of the powerful Nugget Falls!

Our son and family also visited the Mendenhall Glacier area and some of the town, while our daughter and family took a helicopter tour, which landed on top of Mendenhall Glacier for a thrilling close-up of the glacier!

Our last view of Juneau, Alaska, where we all had a wonderful time!

We would enjoy another day at sea, and our cruise's last town to visit is Sagway, Alaska--my next post. 

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Juneau, Alaska

Juneau, Alaska’s remote capital, sits in the state’s panhandle, at the base of 3,819-ft. Mount Roberts. It’s a popular cruise-ship stop, reachable only by boat or seaplane.

A tram carries visitors 1,800 feet up Mount Roberts to an alpine area with hiking trails, wildflowers, and views of Gastineau Channel. This is also the site of the Juneau Raptor Center, dedicated to local birds.

We took an excursion to the Mendenhall Glacier located in part of the Tongass National Forest.  Mendenhall is located 12 miles from downtown Juneau, on land owned by the Federal Forest Service, which provides a visitor center, park rangers, trails, and year-round exhibits and educational outreach.

The glacier is a 13-mile ribbon of ice that flows from the Juneau Ice Field. which is a 1,500 square mile frozen plateau that feeds a total of 38 major glaciers. The Juneau Ice Field is the fifth-largest ice field in North America and is leftover from the last ice age.  Mendenhall Glacier has been in a period of retreat.  In fact, there were various markers that were placed on the lakeshore, and in the visitor center, that showed how the glacier at one time covered those areas in as little as 60 - 90 years ago!

It certainly was a beautiful glacier!

Double click on the photo above to enlarge it and read this informational placard.

Double click on to enlarge

Although there are many negative effects of the recession of the Mendenhall Glacier and glaciers in general, there are also a few positive outcomes. With the retreat of the Mendenhall Glacier, the Mendenhall Lake has formed. The lake has a unique ecosystem and is a nursery for a variety of fish including several types of salmon, Dolly Varden char, and cutthroat trout.

Click on to enlarge

In the ever-changing landscape of Mendenhall Glacier, even the Nugget Falls waterfall has moved since a 1952 photo seen in the placard above, was taken.

There is a 45 minute round trip trail that leads to Nugget Falls.

We were tempted to take the walk, but we knew our allotted tour time here would not allow it... 

...so we went inside the visitor center to enjoy the views of it there, as well as the other exhibits.

Double click on to enlarge

There were many informational placards in and around the visitor center...

...and beautiful examples of a forest reclaiming the former glacier land with the growth of flora, fauna, trees, and lichen.

Our next stop on our excursion was the DIPAC Macaulay Salmon Fish Hatchery.  

The goal of Douglas Island Pink and Chum, Inc. is to sustain and enhance valuable salmon resources of the State of Alaska for the economic, social, and cultural benefit of all citizens, and to promote public understanding of Alaska's salmon resources and salmon fisheries through research, education, and tourism.  At the Ladd Macaulay Visitor Center, we learned about the fascinating life cycle of salmon, their nearshore marine environment, and the inner workings of a hatchery through a variety of exhibits and commentaries.

The hatchery raises just over 130 million chum, king, and coho salmon annually and is designed to allow visitors to see the outside operations of an active hatchery.

There were many placards along the walkway by the freshwater pens holding the young salmon.  They explained how salmon eggs were harvested and fertilized, the stages of salmon development, the freshwater rearing phase, the saltwater rearing phase, and then their release.

Salmon are assisted in spawning to ensure their numbers are not depleted by fishing by men or wildlife.  

During the months of July through September, millions of salmon swim up a 450-foot fish ladder outside the fishery and gather into holding ponds until they are ready to reproduce, and the life cycle begins again. We were visiting too early in June to see this sight but the photos we saw of it are amazing!

We enjoy eating salmon and usually purchase sockeye or silver (coho) to eat at home, but we did try samples of all the rest during our cruise.  King salmon is especially rare and delicious!

After leaving the fishery our excursion bus drove to a beautiful forested area in Juneau and there, under tall pine trees, we were treated to an authentic Alaskan Salmon Bake and buffet.  

There were unlimited pieces of fresh wood fire-grilled salmon and many different sides to enjoy in the buffet, plus beer and wine for purchase if desired.

Everything was so good!

Back on our cruise ship, we soon set sail again and enjoyed gazing at scenic views of the Alaskan shoreline from our balcony.

Our last stop in Alaska was ahead--Ketchikan!

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