Matanuska Glacier  

Matanuska Glacier

Matanuska Glacier, one of Alaska's most accessible glaciers, is a stable 27-mile long river of ice flowing from the Chugach Mountains north almost to the Glenn Highway. With a four-mile wide terminus so close to one of Alaska's major highways, the Matanuska Glacier is the most popular roadside attraction between Anchorage and Glennallen.

Most visitors get close with the ice at Glacier Park, a private campground at Mile 102 of the Glenn Highway. A private road leads to a parking lot at the terminal moraine and from there visitors can access a self-guided trail that takes them to the gravel-laced ice at the foot of the glacier. The park offers guides who outfit their clients with a helmet, crampons and trekking poles and lead them on a trek across the glacier.

To the south of Glacier Park is Matanuska Glacier State Recreation Site, a 229-acre recreation area located adjacent to the Glenn Highway at Mile 101. Although there is no direct access to the glacier, this state site provides some of the best views of the Matanuska Glacier and the headwaters of the Matanuska River.