Advanced Trekking on the Glacier

Here at MICA Guides there is no shortage on choices when it comes to what trek to take. Sometimes it can be hard to know what trip is best for you and your group.

One of my favorite trips on the glacier is the Advanced Trek. This day trip is a great way to dive a little deeper into The Matanuska Glacier. If ice climbing is not quite your thing but you still want to spend the day on the glacier and get your heart rate up a bit – The Advanced Trek is the trek for you!

The trip begins at 10am from our basecamp where you can get a sneak peak of the glacier from the parking lot as you get ready to gear up and head down the road to the toe of the glacier.

Trekking through the moraine to the backcountry

A trip like this requires a bit more gear like harnesses and ice axes, which we get you geared up with as you check-in. Your guide will also carry all the heavy stuff (rope, ice screws, etc)!

Unlike the 4-hour long Ice Fall Trek, the Advanced Trek is 7-hours giving you plenty of time on the ice to explore, so make sure you have plenty of energy because you will be out and about all day. With more time you are also able to trek into the backcountry which is not accessible to those on shorter trips. The trek into the backcountry is a few mile hike through the Glacial Moraine, which looks a like like the moon.

The Backcountry

Once you arrive in the backcountry your guide will help you get your gear on and start showing you around one of my favorite parts of the glacier. For one, the only other people who you’ll come across on this part of the glacier are other folks on a MICA trip, so it is quite quiet and serene. Not to mention the fact that you’ll get to picnic on the glacier (we recommend a homemade 907 bowl for the trip)!

Hands free viewing!

One of my favorite things about this type of trek is that with the rope and harnesses you get the opportunity to clip in and lean into some crevasses, moulins, blue pools, or whatever other cool features the guides have found recently. Our other trips don’t have the opportunity for this type of exploration and I don’t think there is a more exhilarating feeling than leaning over a 50ft drop or staring into the icy waters of a blue pool from the comfort and safety of a harness and knowing guide.

Would you consider spending your day on the Matanuska doing an Advanced Trek? Find booking information here!