Harding Icefield

The hike to Harding Icefield is an extremely popular hike near Seward, AK within Kenai Fjords National Park. The Harding Icefield is an enormous ice cap that covers 700 square miles, and the Exit Glacier is the most accessible of the many glaciers that carve valleys and fjords surrounding the ice cap. From the Exit Glacier trailhead, visitors can do a short hike to a low viewpoint of the toe of the glacier, but the true highlight is the Harding Icefield trail that switchbacks up to several viewpoints that overlook both the glacier and the broader Harding Icefield.

The trail begins with a wide crushed gravel path for about 0.4 miles before turning right onto the Harding Icefield trail. The trail switchbacks along a well-maintained trail in the forest 1 mile further to reach the Marmot Meadows viewpoint. Here the trail briefly flattens to emerge onto a few rocky outcrops that provide the first views of the Exit Glacier as well as the Resurrection River valley looking back. For the next mile, the trail steepens again and winds its way above treeline to the Top of the Cliffs viewpoint with incredible views in all directions. Wildflowers such as lupines, fireweed, and paintbrushes line the trail here in summer.

Beyond the Top of the Cliffs, the trail continues for another 1.8 miles among wildflowers, snowfields, and rock fields. This section of the trail holds snow easily until July, and the end of the trail can remain snowy year round. Microspikes can be useful depending on the amount of snow remaining. About 0.2 miles before the end, the trail passes a small emergency shelter (camping in the shelter is prohibited). Upon reaching the end of the trail, hikers are rewarded with phenomenal views of the Harding Icefield.

Brown and black bears as well as moose and other wildlife are frequently seen in the Exit Glacier area, so caution and bear awareness is critical. The visitor center often keeps an updated notice at the trailhead with wildlife reports; they can also provide updated trail conditions, as the snow lingers into the summer months at high elevations. Additionally, the road to Exit Glacier closes in winter and typically reopens sometime in the late spring, so the area is inaccessible by road for much of the year.