Itinerary
The Glacier Canoe Paddle and Hike is our most sought-after adventure. Your journey begins at the Mendenhall Lake, where a canoe guide will provide paddle instruction. Equipped with gear, board your spacious canoe and set course for the Mendenhall Glacier. Witness Arctic tern nesting grounds and the cascading Nugget Falls as you glide past, with stunning views of the glacier in the distance. As the glacier draws near, keep your eyes peeled for freshly calved icebergs.
Exit the canoes and hike the rocky terrain, gaining intimate views of the glacier and learn about its rapid recession. Explore this ancient ice age wilderness and marvel at its ice features, including crevasses, ice fall at the toe of the glacier, and other deep blue mysteries. Constantly changing, the glacier offers a unique experience each day. This tour does not venture onto the glacier, but delivers front-row views. After immersing yourself at the glacier, board the canoes and paddle back across Mendenhall Lake.
Stop At:
• Above & Beyond Alaska, 2767 Sherwood Ln # C, Juneau, AK 99801-8546
• Mendenhall Glacier, Mendenhall Valley, Juneau, AK
See Availability.
490 S Franklin St, Juneau, AK 99801, USA
Traveler pickup is offered
The “C” Sign, located near the cruise ship docks directly between Mt. Roberts Tramway and the green Taku Smokeries building, is our centralized downtown meeting location for all clients in the downtown area, including the majority of cruise ship passengers.
Clients staying at major hotels in the Mendenhall Valley may be picked up directly from their hotel.
Clients with their own transportation need to contact our office to arrange a meeting location.
5 hours 30 minutes(approx.)
Returns to original departure point
Not wheelchair accessible
Not recommended for travelers with back problems
Not recommended for pregnant travelers
No heart problems or other serious medical conditions
Travelers should have a strong physical fitness level
Age minimum of 12 years and older only
Please note, this tour requires a minimum of 4 to operate. If minimum requirement is not met, reservation is subject to change or cancellation.
Maximum weight 250 pounds
You must include the following in the comments section when booking: raingear & shoe sizes for each passenger, (for adult men and women, S-XXL and youth, S-L) and any pertinent medical information. Smallest shoe size that can be accommodated is Youth 2 and largest is Adult 14.
All clients will be outfitted in 8 person or 12 person canoes, with 1 to 2 guides depending on the group size.
All clients must be in physically fit condition and capable of paddling 5-6 miles and hiking about 2 miles roundtrip. All clients must know how to swim.
Due to the inherent risks involved, we do not permit pregnant guests to participant.
With group departures we try to maximize our trip capacity and subsequently may need to alter the time to accommodate additional customers. If your trip's departure time changes we will notify you as soon as possible.
Glacier Access and feature exploration: The Mendenhall Glacier is receding daily. Because the glacier is in a state of constant change, not all features may be present or accessible. We will explore the edges of the glacier safely from the bedrock. This tour does not include trekking on the glacier.
A specific amount of time exploring the edge of the glacier cannot be guaranteed. The amount of time at the glacier is dependent on the group's pace and weather conditions
Clients must disclose information regarding pertinent medical conditions/history, allergies and any type of restriction or limitation that might introduce a higher degree of challenge on this trip.
RELEASE OF LIABILITY/ASSUMPTION OF RISK FORM: Every participant on the trip must sign a Release of Liability/Assumption of Risk form at the start of the trip. Alterations and/or deletions to the waiver are not permitted.
Maximum weight is 250 lbs per person
This experience requires good weather. If it’s canceled due to poor weather, you’ll be offered a different date or a full refund
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 12 travelers
Confirmation will be received within 48 hours of booking, subject to availability
Posted By : TexasRascal
Dan and Alex were exceptional guides. The day we went temps were in the upper 30s with intermittent rain. ABAK, the tour operator, supplied all the gear needed. They’ll give you rain suit, boots, life vest, and waterproof bag for storing personal items. You get a short canoeing lesson and safety briefing then it’s into the lake. The paddle is mildly strenuous as you’ll be paddling a couple miles but all the effort is worth it. Great trip with a great couple of guides.
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Posted On : 2024-05-15
Posted By : Richard_D
Two great guides pushed and mush'd us. They were very informative on both the water and for the short hike. Their office was friendly and super responsive.
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Posted On : 2023-08-01
Posted By : Julia2133
Our guides and the tour were amazing! Super knowledgeable and fun. I was impressed by how well run the trip was and how well prepped they were with gear and snacks for us. Would definitely recommend to others.
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Posted On : 2023-07-15
Posted By : jrosebud10
This was an excellent experience with a fantastic crew! Guides were super knowledgeable (and funny to boot). Ben and Chris made everyone feel comfortable in the canoe and just had so much knowledge of the glacier. We were really lucky in that we also saw a couple of bald eagles along the way. It's a little sad to see how much the glacier has receded over time but it is still well worth going there and having your mind blown by how much ice there really is. Do the paddling tour -- it's taxing on the arms but the views and how close up you get to the glacier itself is so worth it! Thanks for a fantastic experience!
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Posted On : 2023-07-11
Posted By : Gloria R
A great way to spend a day in Juneau. Noah and Keanu (spelling - sorry!) were fantastic guides. They are very knowledgeable about the history of the area, the geology and fauna and kept us all paddling along. You will need to paddle! Not kidding. It’s about an hour each way. So worth it though as the glacier is beautiful and the lake is peaceful. Not really a hike- we walked a bit to get closer to the glacier, but it’s really about the canoeing. The trip is very well organized. It was a bit chilly and there was rain on and off, so layer accordingly.
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Posted On : 2023-06-29
Posted By : Renee_T
This is not a 4-6 hour trip. The actual activity is maybe 3 hours at best. The other times are waiting for people to arrive, fitting gears (less than 10 minutes).
We rode the van to the west glacier trail head. The canoeing was fun. About 1 hrs to the glacier. We tested and bathroom break (behind rocks). Because of receding glacier, the viewing from a far is about 20-30 minutes. Then we row back. That's about 30-40 minutes. I was instructed to be at the pick up point around 0800. I got back from the trip, return gear, use the bathroom and in van to the drop off point by 1345.
It is closer view of glacier than looking at it from the visitor center. There is significantly less carbon foot print than those helicopter,/ sea plane tour. But it didn't add much for 300+ than the view with binocularat the visitor center. There is NO longer trek on the Mendenhall glacier.
Would I recommend it to my family. No at this time when there is significant receding of glacier. The view not that much from the visitor center
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Posted On : 2023-06-23
Posted By : Jean A
Kimball Taylor was an excellent guide and gave us an experience to remember! The pick up was timely and despite the rainy weather we were able to get really close to the Mendenhall Glacier and Nugget Falls
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Posted On : 2023-05-30
Posted By : edwarddb2015
Top notch company. First class experience from pickup, to outfitting (rain gear), to the quality of the canoe. The unfortunate thing is that there really is no trek anymore. The glacier has receded significantly over the past year. Just a year ago apparently you could land on the beach and walk right onto the glacier. Now the glacier is hundreds of yards away and only there for a photo op. So the trek was all of maybe a 100 yr walk. If you want to trek on a glacier, you need to book a tour with a helicopter landing.
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Posted On : 2023-05-30
Posted By : Bellasmommbsc
Outstanding Experience! Above and Beyond Alaska were wonderful, professional and helpful. Our tour of the glacier was amazing and our Guide Cash was fun, knowledgeable, and passionate in giving us the history of the glacier and the area. This tour was the highlight of our trip to Alaska. We highly recommend Above and Beyond Alaska and our guide Cash.
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Posted On : 2022-09-28
Posted By : Anissa J
Amazing tour! The only reason I am giving 4 stars is because we were not able to step foot on to the glacier which I feel like was unfortunately a little misleading since we booked this tour to be able to walk/trek on the glacier. Otherwise, all the other details and aspects of this tour were incredible. Our guides were beyond wonderful, the scenery was breathtaking, the company had a bag of snacks/goodies for us around lunch time which was very nice and we were able to take home the water bottle they provided us. I would highly recommend this tour, just know that you may not be able to walk on the glacier because it may not be safe.
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Posted On : 2022-08-28
