Mendenhall Glacier Visitor Center

Eric the Erratic

Eric, a square chunk of granite sits among other rocks.

I am a granite boulder that was once part on the Mendenhall Towers about 7 miles up the valley.

Eric, the granite chunk, sits on the glacier surface next to the ground it fell from.

The grinding of the glacial ice caused me to break off the side of the mountain and tumble down 60 feet. I landed on top of the glacier and came to rest on the icy surface.

Eric, the granite chunk sits on the sloping glacier surface as it travels down from its original home.

For 80 years I rode on the glacier until I was deposited on a flat piece of ground in the Mendenhall Valley.

Eric sits on the ground, flanked by trees and a duck.

I am called an erratic because I didn’t fit in with the rest of the landscape.

Tongass National Forest | Mendenhall Glacier Visitor Center
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