Mendenhall Glacier from near the visitor center.
Juneau, Day 1: Mendenhall Glacier
Juneau, Day 1: Mendenhall Glacier
Marcus UlrichAs I headed off on my rental bike towards the Mendenhall Glacier visitor center, the road had a wide bike lane and the drivers were giving me lots of space. Suddenly, a sign said 'bike lane ends'. Umm? I guess I just don't get a bike lane the whole way.
I kept going and while drivers were still giving me space, the lanes were narrower and the speeds a lot higher. Then a tiny sign in the bushes read said pedestrians and bikes were prohibited. Umm, ok? Wtf. I crossed the now small freeway to the relative safety of a parking lot to figure out what had happened. Fortunately, a kind local noticed my WTF face and explained how I needed to turn right before the bike lane ended to get on a smaller old highway. There weren't any signs and I wasn't the first to make this mistake he said.
I followed his directions and turned around and was soon back on a road with a bike lane. I don't know why they don't put up a sign showing where to go to continue the bike lane, but this would not be the end of the poorly marked bike lane changes. Now that I was prepared for it though, I didn't miss another unmarked turn.
The route continued along near but not on the highway sometimes heading down a road with a 'Dead End' sign while the path would continue. It was interesting to see the suburban Juneau landscape: wetlands mixed with industrial zones mixed with homeless camps, but if I did it again, I'd just try to take the bike on a bus and skip this section.
The Mendenhall Glacier visitor center filled with people, but at least the bike lanes were nice and the traffic a little less intense. It's probably worth visiting this area but not worth spending a lot of time.
I headed to the other side of the Mendenhall lake and this area was a lot more peaceful and less crowded. The area is suburban with houses coming right up to but not next to the lake.
I rode around the Mendenhall campground, curious about how crowded it might be and it was nearly empty despite well developed sites right along the lake side with better views than from the packed visitor center. I think there's even showers.
I kept riding and ended up on a well-developed trail that I hoped would take me along the side of the lake. Somehow, it sent me in a loop back to the campground. It was getting a little late, so I decided to head back to Juneau rather than figure out where I'd missed a turn.
You do get a few more options for things to add to them: butter, currywurst, cilantro, vinegar. Probably getting all of them wasn't a great idea. They were good, but once is enough kinda good.
Typical Juneau view. Well, seems like there's often even more cruise ships.
salmon? and dead salmon?
I rented a bike to get to the glacier viewpoint. Juneau seems reasonably bike friendly, but the routes are very poorly marked. While the road ends here, the bike path continues.
Glacier view from the visitor center.
Heron posing for photos. There were 3 more in the background but the don't show up much in the photo.
More glacier pics because why not.
Me and a few hundred other people made the 2 mile round trip hike to Nugget Falls.
I think there were news stories about this river flooding parts of the town with glacier meltwater just a few days before. It seemed mostly back to normal at this point.
Riding around town. Very suburban.
Riding around near the glacier was nice with not too much traffic. Getting there involved riding next to busy highways though. I'd try to take the bike on a bus if I did it again.
While the visitor center side was a zoo, this side of the lake was mostly peaceful. There was a campground with only a couple people and views like this. It was a weekday though.
Nice
