Glaciers are magnificent natural structures, dense sheets of ice that extend for miles. From a few yards to thousands of feet thick. It’s no wonder that many adventurous travelers put hiking high on their bucket list. But while glaciers may seem like stable, non-hazardous slabs of solid terrain perfect for exploration, they can actually be far from that.
Head to Athabasca Glacier in Alberta, Canada, one of North America’s most popular glaciers, and listen to a guide warn solo wanderers of invisible threats to their safety. Because beneath their feet could lie a world of hidden dangers like crevasses and icy rivers, and one wrong move could land explorers in the hospital or worse. It’s from. Therefore, if you are going to step on a glacier, do not even think about walking on the surface without hiring a guide, if you do not have sufficient training and experience.
glacier science
Glaciers may seem like dense, stable sheets of ice, like concrete, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. In fact, glaciers are living, breathing things, explains climbing guide and expedition team member Maria Incaustegui. Lindblad National Geographic Expedition This includes ships bound for Antarctica, where glaciers abound. That is, they are far from static structures, they are constantly changing, moving, changing, receding, growing.
“Glacial terrain is highly dynamic terrain and is beyond the capabilities of most people without proper awareness and methods to find routes and mitigate difficult terrain,” says the Canadian Mountain Guides Association. (ACMG) certified guide, Zummin instructionIt is operated in partnership with. ice walk Located in British Columbia and Alberta, Canada.
Glaciers are formed over centuries, snow is compressed and turns into ice. Many sprout from one large continental mass called an ice sheet, usually in veritable rivers of frozen liquid that flow through valleys between mountain peaks, and all the weight of the frozen water succumbs to gravity and flows downwards. . These fingers of ice, also called tributaries, often end up in extensions of the ground where the water surface or ice simply breaks off, but they can also occur in areas such as cirque glaciers or hanging glaciers that exist in natural bowls within the landscape. Other types of glaciers tend not to. It has a traditional endpoint.
And, like a typical river, glaciers can change, grow, and shrink dramatically over the course of a year. While annual precipitation in the form of snow increases its magnitude, factors such as: When the temperature rises, it melts or shrinks.. If both are balanced, it will be stable.
Unfortunately, most glaciers around the world Instead of growing, they are rapidly retreating as a result of climate change.. But no matter how they move, they slowly crawl over rocks, sediment, and even water, slowly scraping back and forth to change the landscape. But it’s not just the rock underneath that changes as the ice moves. The glacier itself moves, shifts, opens. But it’s not just the surface. The real danger lies below.
Beware of sneaky crevasses
Perhaps the most dangerous feature that glaciers have as a result of their natural movement are crevasses. Stress cracks in ice that crack open as a result of ice movement. As glaciers ebb and flow, the ice slides over rocks, creating friction that can weaken the ice and open gaps in its structure. These depths can range from a few inches to several kilometers, explains Intxaustegi. And falling into them can mean injury or death in seconds. The worst part is that it can get covered in a thin layer of snow or ice, making it impossible to see from the surface if you don’t know what you’re looking for.
“They hide very well,” Inchaustegui said. Even a well-trained person can miss something if they’re not careful. Even worse, she continues, even a crevasse just a few feet deep can cause broken bones and other serious injuries.
That means understanding the science of snow and ice and understanding when what appears to be solid hides crevasses. When and how to move around the ice requires a lot of education as well as experience, Patterson said.
Crevasse isn’t the only thing lurking below the surface.
glacier mill
A water feature known as a milwell or moulin (also known as a glacier mill) is a water feature where surface water takes advantage of a weak point in the ice to create a circular vertical shaft that connects to the flow beneath the glacier and eventually ends up at the end of the ice or It forms where it flows to the edge. Also known as the toe or leading edge. These channels under the ice can be as narrow as a few inches in diameter, and if you step into them, you could be seriously injured or killed.
Additionally, “water features such as mill wells change as the water flows, sometimes creating holes that weren’t visible a few days ago,” Patterson said. So even if you took a guided hike a month or a year ago, you could be on the very same glacier and have no idea what kind of world exists beneath your feet.
Patterson recalls a story about a friend and mentor who was able to observe him more closely than he expected. This person was a park ranger at the time and slipped into the Saskatchewan Glacier glacier factory in the 1970s. He then slipped down a channel under the ice for several minutes before being, by great luck, spit out alive in an outflow lake about 220 yards from the point of his fall.
Other risks
In addition to crevasses and water wells, there are many other hazards that you can encounter on your way to the glacier. Patterson said rockfalls, flooding, icefalls and highly technical terrain can all pose extreme risks to explorers who may underestimate the dangers of wilderness landscapes. states.
Find a glacier guide
But that doesn’t mean you should avoid glacier adventures. On the contrary, many glacier-rich destinations have an abundance of guides and guiding companies. To find a reliable company that knows the ins and outs of when and how to travel on ice, check the guide’s qualifications and experience in glacial terrain, especially whether they have glacier travel or crevasse rescue training.
These people not only guide you safely on the ice, they also take you to places you wouldn’t have found on your own, educate you about the landscape, and share meaningful history while you explore. I’ll give it to you. Whatever you do, go with someone you know. Please come back alive and safe.
