I took this photo in May just after the winter ice disappeared from Mendenhall Lake. Right after break-up, the water level in the lake is usually very low. The glacier’s ice is coming out of a deep winter freeze and just beginning to thaw starting the process of refilling the lake. The low water level […]
Glaciers
Black Wolf, Mendenhall Glacier, Alaska #3442
An image of the wolf who captured our hearts, Romeo. A special moment to remind us of how lucky we are to live with a glacier and wildlife in our very own backyard. This image illustrates the month of February in the 2023 Alaska Calendar. Purchase your favorite calendar in local Juneau stores or at markkelley.com. I will […]
Aurora Borealis, Juneau, Alaska #3439
It was an amazing night of northern lights storming over Auke Lake, Mt. McGinnis, and the Coast Mountains. Unlike the high arctic which is regularly awash in the aurora, many outsiders seem surprised to know that Juneau gets northern lights. I usually go out five to ten times a year hoping the shoot the lights […]
Glacier Blue Ice, Tracy Arm, Alaska #3438
I moved to Juneau in August 1979 to become the photojournalist the Juneau Empire, our local newspaper. One of my first assignments was a story on Tracy Arm and its Sawyer Glaciers. I was blown away while experiencing the blue ice majesty of this never-never land. During my 43 years of visiting this wonderland, I […]
Harbor Seal, Tracy Arm, South Sawyer Glacier, Alaska #3343
I love going to the South Sawyer Glacier basin in Tracy Arm to photograph harbor seals. The basin is one of the most productive seal pupping areas in Alaska’s Inside passage. During pupping season, from May through June, there are way too many seals in the basin to count. With that many animals in one […]
Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska #3440
Kayakers paddle through the pack ice of Margerie Glacier in Glacier Bay National Park. I spent a week in late May 2021 onboard the expedition vessel “The Sea Wolf” to get this shot. The Sea Wolf is based out of Gustavus and specializes in week-long trips in Glacier Bay National Park. My job is to […]
Mendenhall Glacier and Lake, Juneau, Alaska #3438
After 43 years of photographing Mendenhall Glacier, this photo rates as one of my most favorite images of the glacier. On this fall day, I waited for the sunrise to light up the Coast Range mountains behind the glacier but before the light actually lit the glacier face. Once the sun hits the glacier, the […]
Mendenhall Glacier, Juneau, Alaska #3422
I visited the Mendenhall Glacier with good friends and we found this amazing surface lake on the ice. Glacier streams and sometimes small rivers can be found on the glacier surface in temperate climates. In places those streams can create lakes. These lakes often disappear just as quickly as they were created. Eventually, the water […]
Johns Hopkins, Glacier Bay NP, Alaska #3417
The face of the 250 foot high Johns Hopkins Glacier dwarfs the Allen Marine catamaran, the Baranof Wind. The Baranof Wind is a day boat that makes daily runs in Glacier Bay National Park. The trip starts and ends in Bartlett Cove. The catamaran travels up and down the West Arm visiting the glaciers in […]
Mendenhall Glacier & Lake, Juneau, AK #3412
Last Saturday the Juneau area experienced wind gusts up to 70 miles per hour and an atmospheric river that dumped so much water on us, I felt like we were getting washed down the drain. Then Monday showed up calm, clear and breathless. The contrast between nature’s wrecking ball and nature’s peaceful serenity was stark […]
Humpback Whale Breach, Juneau, Alaska #3404
A baby humpback whale breaches in the whale waters around Juneau, Alaska, with the Eagle Glacier and the surrounding Coast Mountains in the background. I, along with Ralph Lee Hopkins, Lindblad Expeditions Director of Photography, and Flip Nicklin, National Geographic Photographer and Whale Trust co-founder, volunteered for two four-day photo safaris out of Juneau as […]
Last week I spent a day in Tracy Arm onboard the Captain Cook. I love going to Tracy Arm in the early summer because the harbor seal pupping season starts in late May and goes into early July. There are literally hundreds of harbor seals giving birth on icebergs in the bay in front of […]
Northern Lights, Mendenhall Glacier, Juneau, Alaska #3392
I had a wonderful shoot on Friday night (see previous posting), and the northern lights’ predictions were strong as well for Saturday night. To tell the truth, I have not had much luck shooting the aurora for the past year. Understandably, I was overjoyed but a little skeptical with the possibility of shooting the lights […]
Mendenhall Glacier and Lake, Juneau, Alaska #3388
About two weeks ago a few intrepid glacier explorers found a network of ice caves along the north side of the Mendenhall Glacier. Ever since then there has been a constant daily line of hundreds of Juneauites marching out to check out the caves. Two Sundays ago, I walked out to the caves starting around […]
Aurora Borealis, Mendenhall Glacier, Juneau, Alaska
This aurora borealis photo is my new Facebook banner image that I took some time ago. This fall/winter I have spent a number of very long, frustrating nights out thinking I was going to get strong showings of the northern lights, only to have no luck. I used to plan on three to four good […]
Mendenhall Glacier, Juneau, Alaska #3382
The weather service forecasted overcast skies for yesterday. This was just fine with me because we have been so busy at the office. At around 11AM I looked out my window and saw clearing skies, so I immediately left and headed to the Mendenhall Glacier to get some good reflection shots. While I was shooting […]
Tracy Arm-Fords Terror Wilderness, Alaska #3379
Is there anyone who does not love the deep blue colors of glacier ice? In this image a small iceberg floats next to a larger iceberg, showing some of the incredible shades of glacier blue. These wonderful blues come from the crystalline structure unique to glacier ice. Glacier ice is not created by water freezing, […]
Alaska, Dog Mushing, Juneau Icefield #3362
In the 1880’s Mark Twain was so awed by his first site of a glacier that he wrote, “A man who keeps company with glaciers comes to feel tolerably insignificant by and by.” In this image I was trying to visibly illustrate his comment depicting the insignificance of humans in the vastness of this other-worldly […]
Moosehead Lake, Juneau, Alaska #3359
It has been one the rainiest summer I can remember in my forty-plus years of living in Juneau. The joke going around town goes as follows: It has only rained two times in Juneau this summer, one time for 40 days and a second time for 30 days. This may be slightly overstated, but it […]
Mendenhall Glacier, Juneau, Alaska #3358
A heads up… this weekend fall colors should be peaking at the glacier! I took this photo on September 12 several years ago. This Saturday is September 12 and currently the weather forecast for this Friday through Monday includes some sunshine! Get out and enjoy the Mendenhall Glacier, autumn colors, and the break from the […]
Mendenhall Glacier, Juneau, Alaska #3357
Bob Engelbrecht treks along an icy ledge next to a deep blue glacial lake on the Mendenhall Glacier in Juneau, Alaska. Last week Bob Engelbrecht and Reed Stoops invited Jan McPhetres and me along on a photo trek on the Mendenhall Glacier. Bob moved to Juneau in 1981, arriving in a Hughes 500 helicopter. Originally, […]
Jokulhlaup, Mendenhall River, Juneau, Alaska #3356
Since 2011 the Mendenhall Glacier Recreation Area has been experiencing glacier lake outburst floods called jokulhlaups. A jokulhlaup is an Icelandic word describing a glacier event where a large body of water created by rainfall and glacier melt collects in a big lake behind a glacier ice dam. Eventually the water pressure gets too great […]
Margerie Glacier, Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska
Margerie Glacier is probably the most visited tidewater glacier in the world. During a regular, non-COVID summer, over half a million cruise ship passengers cruise up to this glacier and spend a couple hours hanging out. About a mile wide, Margerie Glacier is 21 miles long and stands 250 feet above and 100 feet below […]
LeConte Glacier, Alaska #3345
A small cloud break at sunset lights up the ocean behind an iceberg from the LeConte Glacier. LeConte Glacier is the most southern tidewater glacier in North America. I have photographed every tidewater glacier in Alaska’s Inside Passage and the LeConte is one of my favorites. I took this photo last year while hosting six […]
Glacier Blue, Alaska
I have always loved the surreal blues of glacier ice and created this 100% silk Glacier Blue Scarf to capture the essence of glacier ice. Join me at the Juneau Alaska Public Market this weekend to touch, feel, and try it on. Take home a piece of wearable art showcasing Alaska’s glacier blues to share with friends and family near and […]
Moon-Lit Mendenhall Glacier, Juneau, Alaska #3126
I have always dreamed of lighting up the Mendenhall Glacier for a night shot. Of course, the only way I could figure out how to do this was to wait for a clear Juneau night sky along with a full moon. At the end of November, two years ago, I was out on a frozen […]
Mendenhall Glacier, Juneau, Alaska #3127
During clear and full-moon nights, when I was younger, I would ski or snowshoe up Spaulding Meadows, past the John Muir cabin, and then up to Auk Mountain to wait for the moon to rise here in Juneau, Alaska. This night in January it was especially cold, maybe zero degrees Fahrenheit, and the wind was […]
Dog Mushing, Juneau Icefield, Alaska #3111
This summer I spent a full day on the Norris Glacier with NorthStar Trekking. In this image three dog sleds mush their way across the Juneau Icefield. The 1,500 square-mile Juneau Icefield is larger than the state of Rhode Island and hosts three dog camps that are only accessible by helicopter. Visitors can enjoy a […]
Cunard MS Queen Elizabeth, Hubbard Glacier, AK #3107
Check it out! This summer we were contacted by Cunard’s corporate office in England to conduct a destination photo shoot of the MS Queen Elizabeth as it kicked off its inaugural season in Alaska. I spent about four weeks chasing the Queen Elizabeth around the Inside Passage waiting for the best weather conditions. We were […]
Mendenhall Glacier, Juneau, Alaska #3102
I have loved every cover of every Juneau Calendar since publishing the first calendar 31 years ago. Yet, this cover is quickly becoming one of my all-time favorites. I remember the night well: I was standing along the edge of Mendenhall Lake in late November and it was around 10 degrees Fahrenheit. My car was […]
Cruise Alaska Magazine #3098
I was happy to see that Alaska Magazine selected this and two other images for their February 2019 Cruising Alaska issue. This image really defines cruising in Alaska. Wouldn’t you like to enjoy these amazing sights of Glacier Bay National Park, while a group of kayakers paddle by? Pick up a copy of this month’s […]
Lupine, Mendenhall Glacier, Juneau, Alaska #3092
This photo is of lupine growing along the walking ramp that leads from the parking lot to the Mendenhall Glacier visitor center in Juneau, Alaska. January and February are typically very busy with deadlines as we get our publishing projects out to press. While looking for images for the reprint of the Mendenhall Glacier book, […]
Mendenhall Glacier and Lake, Juneau, Alaska #3091
In Juneau the last week of January was unusually warm and wet; rains washed most of the snow away at sea level, and covered the ice on the Mendenhall Lake with a thin pool of water. On Friday the skies cleared and the temperature nosedived into the low teens. The water that had pooled up […]
Ice Cave, Mendenhall Glacier, Juneau, Alaska #3087
I first visited the Mendenhall ice caves in the summer of 2009, when my son Gabe took me under the ice for my first time. I was so visually amazed by what I was seeing! One of my images from that day’s shoot ended up in a Patagonia catalog. Between 2009 and 2017 the caves […]
Glacier Blue #3082
Tracy Arm-Fords Terror Wilderness near Juneau, Alaska, is one of my favorite places to search for beautiful icebergs. Locals sometimes refer to the icebergs in Tracy Arm as glacier jewels. The deep blue colors of glacier ice are such an amazing, almost unreal sight, and being able to take a piece of nature’s beauty home with […]
Calving, Johns Hopkins Glacier, Glacier Bay NP #3081
I have been shooting calving glaciers for over 38 years, and have been lucky enough to have witnessed hundreds of calving events. Sadly most of the images just do not work. It is terribly frustrating bearing witness to such amazing powers of nature and not being able to translate that moment into a still image. In person […]
Exit Glacier, Kenai Fjords NP, Seward, Alaska #3079
Most people do not associate autumn colors with glaciers, and for good reasons. The world’s most famous glaciers are in Antarctica and Greenland and have no deciduous trees anywhere near. In Alaska we have plenty of deciduous trees surrounding glaciers, at least at lower elevations. During a fall visit to Seward I found the Exit […]
Killer Whales, Point Retreat, Juneau, Alaska #3072
I photographed this pod of killer whales on the last day of a four-day photo workshop I organized with Ralph Lee Hopkins as a fundraiser for the foundation, “Whale Trust Maui.” We spent the last hour of our trip surrounded by killer whales with glaciers and Point Retreat lighthouse in the background. We had such […]
Icebergs, Tracy Arm, Alaska #3058
I was cruising in Tracy Arm-Fords Terror Wilderness on an incredibly sunny day in early May with Alaskan Dream Cruises, aboard the Chichagof Dream, and found this interesting iceberg. I am not sure why but every once in a while icebergs will appear slightly green. My theory is that the strong backlighting on the thinning […]
Mendenhall Glacier, Juneau, Alaska #3056
A constant problem for photographers is access and opportunity to photograph hard-to-reach places and events. This problem is especially difficult in Alaska because of its remote nature. I really appreciate everyone that has helped me get to locations that make photos like this one possible for the last forty years. I shot this photo of […]
Northern Lights, Mendenhall Glacier, Alaska #3048
In early November I spent two cold nights on a northern lights watch in front of the Mendenhall Glacier. I logged four-hours each night and got two ten-minute opportunities of actual shooting time, and what a great twenty minutes! I posted the first image from this shoot during the holidays in late December and named the image “Rainbow […]
Mendenhall Glacier, Juneau, Alaska #3045
According to the Juneau Empire January 2018 was the coldest January in Juneau for the last six years. Daily temperature averaged 28.5 degrees Fahrenheit. These crisp, cold days brought out many Juneauites to take advantage of the frozen Mendenhall Lake. Having a very accessible glacier in your backyard makes for a very special place to […]
Northern Lights-Mendenhall Glacier, Juneau, AK #3041
Rainbow Aurora over Glacier Lit by Full Moon During a northern lights’ shoot in Alaska, I usually spend the night in my car at a good overlook, and step outside to shoot if and when the lights appear. For this particular photo shoot in early November I spent two nights outside of my car and […]
Humpback Whales, Herbert Glacier, Juneau, Alaska #3032
I love images that tell a story. Alaska’s glaciers grind down mountains and dump their mineral loads into the ocean. These minerals hang in suspension and become part of the basic building blocks for phytoplankton. Phytoplankton are eaten by krill, and krill in turn get eaten by small schooling fish like herring. Each year humpback whales, with their 50-foot […]
Bald Eagle, Tracy Arm, Alaska #3029
Many of you know that Tracy Arm is one of my favorite places in Southeast Alaska. I go every spring knowing that eagles are hanging out on icebergs, scavenging for anything they can find while waiting for the return of salmon in summer. Springtime is still a lean time of the year for our eagle population. […]
Harbor Seals, Tracy Arm, Alaska #3026
What great luck! A mother harbor seal and her pup cast a perfect reflection in the blue-green glacier waters of Tracy Arm. I have photographed seals with pups on the floating ice of Glacier Bay and Tracy Arm for over forty years and this is the first and only time I have been able to […]
Ice Cave, Mendenhall Glacier, Alaska #3004
Come to the Mendenhall Glacier Visitor Center on Wednesday, May 10, from 6-8pm, and celebrate the release of my new book “Alaska’s Mendenhall Glacier.” I will give a twenty minute presentation at 6:15PM to talk about some of my more favorite images in the book including this image I call “Iced Over” Everyone is invited! […]
Mendenhall Glacier, Juneau, Alaska Image 2988
The clear ice of a frozen Mendenhall Lake gives us a mirror reflection of the face of Mendenhall Glacier. The people in this image are a bonus, serving as a reference point of just how big the glacier really is. I have only seen the ice this crystal clear a couple times in my forty […]
Humpback Whales and Eagle Glacier, Juneau, Alaska-#2968
For the past three years my good friends, Rich and Lori, have come up to visit Juneau and they charter Jayleen Beedle to take them whale watching. I am so lucky for being invited along, and for actually getting a calendar photo on each trip. I took this image during their visit this summer. I have known Jayleen since she […]
Contest Winner, Alaska Airlines Magazine- Image #2960
If you are flying with Alaska Airlines this month, check out their May in-flight magazine. Each year the May edition features the winners of the Magazine’s annual photo contest. I placed first in this year’s Showcase 2016, the 24th annual photo contest. The fun news is that the first place prize is two round-trip, first class […]
Glacier Bay OMG, Glacier Bay National Park-Image #2955
Another special moment from last summer; you may remember this post from when I returned from Glacier Bay. I entered this and three other images in the Memorial Maria Luisa Photo contest in Spain. All four images were selected for Honorable Mentions. This image is also the cover of the 2017 Alaska calendar. The MML photo […]
Mendenhall Glacier Ice Cave, Juneau, Alaska-Image #2942
A frozen Mendenhall Lake made for easy access two winters ago to the now world famous Mendenhall ice caves. All of Juneau turned out for a visit. This particular ice cave has since collapsed. In this image my friend Stephanie is catching the sunlight shining into the cave through a moulin. A moulin is a […]
Mendenhall Glacier, Juneau, Alaska – Image #2941
Mt McGinnis, Mt Stroller White, and the Mendenhall Glacier reflect in an open-water pond created by the flowing water of Steep Creek in winter. Juneau and Southeast Alaska experience warmer temperatures during the winter months compared to interior Alaska, and we often have open water in the middle of winter. Lucky me, as I am […]
Mendenhall Glacier, Juneau, Alaska-Image #2938
I love snow, and the Juneau area has been getting hit with large dumps of snow for the past few days. The world of winter white looks great. Virgin snow and sunshine makes any place look oh-so perfect, yet last year our town did not get much snow, and I missed it. This shot is from the […]
Nugget Falls, Mendenhall Glacier, Alaska-Image 2930
The Juneau 2015 summer tourist season comes to an end this Thursday, September 24th, with the final arrival of the Holland America ship the Oosterdam. The Mendenhall Glacier is Juneau’s number one tourist attraction, and one of the most visited spots at the glacier is Nugget Falls. I love it photographically when I can get […]
Killer whales, Herbert Glacier, Juneau, Alaska – Image #2926
I am known as the photographer that only takes photos on beautiful sunny days and this reputation is somewhat valid. I have so much work to keep my small business running, I chose to do my office work on the rainy days and save the sunny days for shooting. However, more and more I find myself shooting on the non-sunny days and […]
Kayakers, Mendenhall Glacier, Juneau, Alaska-Image #2924
Paddlers in a double kayak cruise by the monolithic ice face of the Mendenhall Glacier. I shot this photo from a high rock wall across from the front of the glacier. When I climbed to my perch for the photo, I was pleasantly surprised by the reflections of the ice walls. I had not expected the reflections, and they […]
Calving Glacier, Johns Hopkins Glacier, Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska – #2921
I just returned from seven days onboard Ronn Patterson’s M/V Delphinus. Eight photographers joined us for a full week in Glacier Bay National Park and we had an amazing trip. The next three weeks I plan to share just a few of the many wonderful images I was able to shoot. I have been photographing Glacier Bay for […]
Mendenhall River Rafters, Juneau, Alaska – Image #2915
Houstonia, a Houston, Texas city magazine, chose this Mark Kelley image for their June 2015 cover. The magazine is doing a story on great escapes and Alaska is part of their focus. The design director, Chris Skiles, discovered markkelley.com in his web search and found this cover image. How cool is that! Thank you for visiting. […]
Glacier Bay – A UNESCO Marine World Heritage Site
I have spent more than eight months of time photographing Glacier Bay over the years and it holds a special place in my heart. It is a wild land of silence and glacial thunder. Last year I was contacted by UNESCO and Jaeger-LeCoultre to help them with their mission to bring more attention to Glacier […]
South Sawyer Glacier, Tracy Arm-Fords Terror Wilderness, Alaska…Image # 2891
If someone just had one day to visit Alaska, I would send them to Tracy Arm-Fords Terror Wilderness. My other hot spot would be the north end of Wonder Lake in Denali National Park. If the weather cooperates, the view of Denali in the Alaska Range is to die for. But, if it’s cloudy it is just another […]
Harbor Seals in Field of Icebergs, South Sawyer Glacier, Tracy Arm-Fords Terror …Image 2883
A rookery of harbor seals hang out on the pack ice in front of the South Sawyer Glacier in Tracy Arm-Fords Terror Wilderness, Southeast Alaska. The ice affords the seals protection from their main predator, the killer whale. The South Sawyer glacier is one of the most active calving tidewater glaciers in Alaska providing this […]
“Once Upon Alaska” 14th Spread…Image 2873
A float plane flies over the Juneau Icefield, a massive sheet of ice more than 80 miles long and 50 miles wide and larger than the state of Rhode Island. About 38 large valley glaciers and over 100 smaller glaciers flow from the Juneau Icefield. One of the best ways to see the 5th […]
“Once Upon Alaska” 13th Spread…Image 2872
Margerie Glacier is a tidewater glacier located deep inside Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve and can only be reached by boat or plane. The glacier ice seen above the waterline is about 25 stories high. The additional ice below the water is estimated to be about 10 stories high. Together the total height of […]
“Once Upon Alaska” 12th Spread…Image 2871
Glaciers that meet the sea are known as tidewater glaciers. As these massive rivers of ice flow downhill, their faces are undercut by tidal currents resulting in spectacular “calving” as huge chucks of ice break off. The faces of some glaciers reach more than 200 feet into the air and may extend father than that […]
Announcing upcoming release of Mark’s latest book – Image 2859
I have not published a new book since 2007 when “Alaska: A Photographic Excursion” came out. I have always wanted to do a kids book and started seriously thinking about it the last four or five years. I wanted the book to use my best photos of Alaska and be fun to read and look […]
Mendenhall Glacier, Juneau, Alaska – Image 2852
This is my friend, Dave Haas, horsing around in front of the face of the Mendenhall Glacier. I was on an assigned shoot for Bradley-Reid, the State of Alaska’s advertising agency, to promote winter tourism. I wanted to show the scale of the glacier and just how accessible it is. In the winter it is […]
Alaska’s Tracy Arm-Fords Terror Wilderness, Book Cover – Image 2776
Last fall, I decided to update my Tracy Arm book that I published in 2004. A lot has changed in Tracy Arm in the last seven years, and the book needed a revision. I added 20 pages, gave it a new name, a new cover and kept the same price. When the book first was […]
Alaska’s Tracy Arm-Fords Terror Wilderness, South Sawyer – Image 2777
Tracy Arm-Fords Terror Wilderness features three tide water glaciers: the two Sawyer Glaciers and the Dawes Glacier. In 1880, when John Muir first explored Tracy Arm, he found only one Sawyer Glacier. By 1990, a photo taken by the USGS showed the Sawyer Glacier had split into two. The north arm is called the Sawyer […]
Auke Lake and Mendenhall Glacier, Juneau, Alaska – Image 2228
I shot this as a cover for the local wilderness guiding group called Alaska Discovery. After I shot this photo, the Chapel by the Lake expanded its parking lot and most of the fireweed in the foreground got paved over. Slowly, the fireweed is returning to this area. This photo illustrates the cover of the […]
Auke Lake, Juneau, Alaska – Image 2276
Auke Lake is one of my most popular photo subjects. The serene lake backdropped by the Mendenhall Towers and Mendenahll Glacier is just drop dead beautiful. Even if I don’t produce a photo, I love my hours exploring the shoreline and all of the possible angles. The University of Alaska-Southeast campus is located on Auke […]
Auke Lake, Juneau, Alaska – Image 2347
A pair of cross-country skiiers heads out across the frozen Auke Lake. This view is taken from the Chapel by the Lake parking lot. Auke Lake is the campus of the University of Alaska-Southeast in Juneau and the students get to check out this view every day. In the background is the edge of the […]
Auke Lake, Juneau, Alaska – Image 2458
Chapel-by-the Lake has of the best known views in Juneau. The view of Auke Lake back-dropped by the Mendenhall Glacier during the peak of the fireweed bloom is a must see in mid-summer. Auke Lake is the home of the University of Alaska-Southeasts Juneau campus. This photo illustrates a card in my collection of blank […]
Calving Glacier, Hubbard Glacier, Wrangell-St.Elias National Park, Alaska – Image 2828
The Hubbard glacier is the longest glacier in Alaska (over 70 miles long) and one of the most active. It is the go-to-spot to get images of a calving glacier. I spend four hours in front of the glacier last May, and had dozens of in-your-face ice events. It is hard to gain perspective but […]
Hubbard Glacier, Wrangell-St Elias National Park, Alaska – Image 2522
The Hubbard Glacier just north of Yakutat starts in Canada and winds its way down to Disenchantment Bay just outside Yakutat, Alaska. This glacier travels over 90 miles from its source in the Yukon Territory and qualifies as the longest tidewater glacier in Alaska. It massive ice face stretches for over six miles. It is […]
Hubbard Glacier, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park, Alaska – Image 2567
I was working on my final shoot for my Alaska book and needed a couple of good photos of Hubbard Glacier just outside Yakutat. It was early September and the Yakutat airport was fogged for my morning arrival. The day was just gorgeous and I could not wait around for another opportunity. I chartered a […]
Calving Glacier, Sawyer Glacier, Tracy Arm – Image 2386
From a boat, I had been photographing mountain goats eating seaweed at thetideline when I heard the glacier crack. I quickly swung and startedshooting the calving glacier. Luckily, I was on auto focus and autoexposure. I would never have had time to make the exposure and focusadjustments manually because everything was happening so fast. To […]
Calving Lamplugh Glacier, Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska – Image 2007
I had been at Lamplugh Glacier all day and had missed a number of good calving photos because of bad luck and poor timing. Finally as evening light approached, I decided to stop all activity and wait for the calve. About an hour into my wait, the best calve of the day happened and I […]
Cruise ship in Tracy Arm-Fords Terror Wilderness – Image 2108
On assignment for this cruise ship company, I shot this photo out of the open door of a helicopter. Forty-five miles south of Juneau, Tracy Arm is an emerald green ribbon of water, dead-ending in two glaciers. This is a favorite day cruise of many Juneauites. I shot this photo using a Nikon F5 with […]
Cruise Ship, Margerie Glacier, Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska – Image 2308
The cruise ship, Crystal Harmony, pauses in front of the Margerie Glacier in Glacier Bay National Park. The Margerie Glacier is themost visited destination in Glacier Bay and is one of the 12 tidewater glaciers in the park. This photo can be found in my new52-week engagement calendar for 2004, in my glacier bay book, […]
Dawes Glacier, Endicott Arm, Tracy Arm-Fords Terror Wilderness, Alaska – Image 2625
I have staked out glaciers for hours waiting for a calving, and it almost never happens. The glacier usually calves when I least expect it and almost never when I am ready. Capturing the ice falling off the face of a glacier involves a lot of luck. What I have found is that my luck […]
Fireweed, Mendenhall Glacier, Juneau, Alaska – Image 2378
One of the most photographed scenes in Juneau is the field of fireweed atBrotherhood Park next to the Mendenhall River with the Mendenhall Glacier inthe background. Most photos only show the scene. There is a great hikingtrail right through the middle of this scene, and I love to put people in myphotos. This photo illustrates […]
Mendenhall Glacier and Lake, Juneau, Alaska – Image 2492
The frozen Mendenhall Lake is a winter play land for Juneauites. With motorized vehicles prohibited, the frozen surface provides unbelievable opportunities for skating, cross-country skiing, strolling and glacier gawking. On this day, my wife and I counted over 200 cars in the parking lot and down the access road. It seemed if everyone we knew […]
Mendenhall Glacier and Lake, Juneau, Alaska – Image 2493
Like everyone else in Juneau, I was fascinated by this mushroom shaped iceberg frozen into the lake. I kept photographing and photographing until I got this image. This image works for me because it shows just how big the iceberg is, and the man walking his dog in a walk-by videoing seems so nonchalant. This […]
Mendenhall Glacier and Lake, Juneau, Alaska – Image 2597
Clear weather, smooth ice and huge icebergs are magnets for the Sunday strolling crowd. I shot this photo from the front doors of Mendenhall Glacier visitor center. It was such a fabulous day that my wife and I counted over 150 cars parked in the two parking lots and the road leading to the visitor […]
Mendenhall Glacier from Brotherhood Park, Juneau, Alaska – Image 2117
The Brotherhood Park, named for the Alaska Native Brotherhood, frames the Mendenhall Glacier. The meadow is a favorite wildflower walk for Juneauites. In early August, it is covered with fireweed blooms; earlier stages of summer display wild irises, Alaska cotton and chocolate lilies. The photo was taken with a Nikon F/5 camera body and a […]
Mendenhall Glacier, Juneau Ice Field, Alaska – Image 2611
You probably think this is a continuation of the winter photos made so easy by Juneaus snowy winter. Actually I shot this dog mushing photo on the Mendenhall Glacier in the summer. There is a great shore excursion available in Juneau where the cruise ship passengers or for that matter independent travelers get a helicopter […]
Mendenhall Glacier, Juneau, Alaska – Image 2348
Cross-country skiers collect at the face of the Mendenhall Glacier. The frozen snow-covered Mendenhall Lake makes for a great ski. This photo illustrates the month of March in my 2004 Juneau Alaska wall calendar. Camera: Nikon F5, Lens: 20-35 f/2.8 Nikkor zoom polarized, Film: 35mm Fuji Velvia slide film -Mark Kelley
Mendenhall Glacier, Juneau, Alaska – Image 2436
Fresh snows had just fallen the night before in the mountains of Juneau on this early November day. When I got to Mendenhall Lake, fog was covering most of it, obscuring my view of the glacier. I waited and waited hoping that the fog would lift and leave the glaciers mirror reflection in the lake. […]
Mendenhall Glacier, Juneau, Alaska – Image 2520
Mendenhall Glacier is one of Alaskas most popular tourist attractions with over 350,000 visitors per year. Located just 13 miles from downtown Juneau, the Mendenhall is a favorite among Juneauites and is commonly referred to as our backyard glacier. The lone man walks the sidewalk to the visitors center. This image illustrates page 70 in […]
Mendenhall Glacier, Juneau, Alaska – Image 2678
The Mendenhall Glacier is over 13 miles long and in some places is over a mile wide. Lakes and streams exist on top of this huge ice mass. Because the water on top of the ice is always eroding the ice it creates holes and cracks causing the streams to always change course, and lakes drain and form new lakes […]
Mendenhall Glacier, Juneau, Alaska – Image 2792
The autumn (mid-September through October) in Juneau is usually very wet with tons of rain. Once in a while the area will experience a clear day or even a semi-dry fall. When this happens, the fall foliage in and around the Mendenhall Glacier can be spectacular. To do this shoot, I spent the day out […]
Mendenhall Glacier, Juneau, Alaska – Image 2794
In the past 34 years, I have literally shot tens of thousands of images of the Mendenhall Glacier, and this one is my favorite image. It was shot on the westside of the lake across from the visitors center. I have only seen the water right in front of the glacier go mirror calm once. […]
Mendenhall Glacier, Juneau, Alaska – Image 2841
The Mendenhall Glacier is a retreating glacier. The glacier has been in retreat since the mid-1700s and in the last 250 plus years has retreated about two and a half miles from its terminal moraine. As seen in these two mirror images, the glacier has retreated over 5,380 feet (more than a mile) and has […]
Mendenhall Glacier, Juneau, Alaska – Image 2852
This is my friend, Dave Haas, horsing around in front of the face of the Mendenhall Glacier. I was on an assigned shoot for Bradley-Reid, the State of Alaskas advertising agency, to promote winter tourism. I wanted to show the scale of the glacier and just how accessible it is. In the winter it is […]
Mendenhall Glacier, Kayak, Juneau, Alaska – Image 2426
On a beautiful August day in 2004, a kayaker paddles the Mendenhall Lake in Juneau, Alaska. This photo illustrates the month of September in my 2006 Southeast Alaska calendar. Camera: Nikon F/5, Lens: 80-200mm f/2.8 polarized, Film 35mm Velvia slide film-Mark Kelley
Mendenhall Glacier, Mendenhall Lake, Juneau, Alaska – Image 2848
Just this past week the Mendenhall Lake finally froze over with a thin layer of skim ice. In my 34 years of photographing the Mendenhall Glacier, I have never seen the water right in front of the glacier go mirror calm. I have many images of the mirror calm lake from the west side but […]