Hubbard Glacier
Tidewater Glacier In Disenchantment Bay · Yakutat, Alaska
The largest tidewater glacier in North America, flowing about 76 miles from the St. Elias Mountains on the Yukon border to a face more than 7 miles wide in Disenchantment Bay, north of the small town of Yakutat. Its ice cliffs rise hundreds of feet above the water, and house-sized blocks break off with a sound like thunder. Unlike most glaciers in Alaska, Hubbard has been advancing for decades, earning the nickname the Galloping Glacier. Twice, in 1986 and in 2002, it pushed across the mouth of Russell Fjord and dammed it, turning the fjord into a rising lake until the ice barrier burst. Most visitors see it from the decks of Gulf of Alaska cruise ships; smaller boats from Yakutat can get closer, ice permitting. A private half-day boat trip for up to six people from Yakutat was quoted at about $950 in 2026.
Disenchantment Bay, reached by cruise ship or boat from Yakutat, Yakutat, Alaska, 99689, United States
Viewed from cruise ships and charters roughly May to September; conditions depend on ice and weather (check operators in Yakutat).