What to Expect
Ships transit Yakutat Bay and enter Disenchantment Bay, holding position 0.5–1 km from the glacier face for 1–2 hours; loose brash ice in the bay occasionally limits the approach closer. The forward and aft open decks are the best viewing positions — center-ship balconies may have limited sightlines depending on the ship's orientation. Binoculars help when watching calving activity on the far flanks of the face. A National Park Ranger from Wrangell-St. Elias — the largest national park in the United States, which the glacier's drainage basin flows through — typically provides narration via the PA system. Overcast mornings filter the light in a way that makes the glacier's blue tones more visible, not less; clear skies are not required for a good viewing.
A Glacier That Is Growing
Most glaciers in Alaska are retreating. Hubbard is an exception: it has been advancing for decades and intermittently closes off the mouth of Russell Fjord, trapping marine life inside and temporarily creating a lake. The fjord closures occurred in 1986 and again in 2002; each time the ice dam eventually broke and the water drained back into the bay. Hubbard is the largest tidewater glacier in North America — 76 miles long from its source in the St. Elias Mountains to its face at the ocean.
Wildlife in Disenchantment Bay
Harbour seals haul out on icebergs near the glacier face; they use the ice as a calving platform, which concentrates them around Hubbard. Steller sea lions, orca, and humpback whales are also sighted in the bay. Bird life includes kittiwakes nesting on the cliff faces adjacent to the glacier. The water near the glacier face is a milky turquoise from glacial flour (rock ground to fine particles by the glacier's movement); the colour is most vivid on overcast days when the water reflects the sky without glare.
Practical Notes
No shore access, no excursion bookings, no local currency needed. Dress for cold and wind regardless of the season — temperatures at the glacier face are significantly lower than in the ship's last port of call, and the wind off the ice can be sharp even in summer. The ship's naturalist-narrated glacier cruising programs are usually included in the fare. Photography: shoot toward the ice face (good light source) rather than away from it; the blue ice colour is most visible in shadows and crevasses.