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Hubbard Glacier Photos
August 14, 2002

On August 14, 2002, pressure from the water rising in Russell Lake, fed by heavy rains, eroded and then burst the dam that had formed between the advancing Hubbard Glacier and the rocky bluff of Gilbert Point. In less than 30 hours, the water level in the 70-square-mile lake dropped 45 feet, from 61 feet above mean low tide to 16 feet above mean low tide. The surge of water created spectacular effects and scoured the channel clean. By high tide on August 15, water was moving relatively serenely back into Russell Fjord with the tide. The glacier face towers about 300 feet above the surface of the water, and the channel between ice and rock is estimated to be about 1000 feet at its widest point. The following photos were taken at about 7 p.m. August 14, roughly midway through the emptying process. They start on the Russell Fjord side of the channel and proceed over Disenchantment Bay. All were taken by Mary McMullin. Click on each photo to bring up a larger version of the image.

Turbulent water fans out from the narrow opening formerly blocked by the glacial morraine into Disenchantment Bay in this view looking bay-ward.
Long shadows highlight the roughness of both the glacier surface and the water tumbling past it.
Muddy water pours out of the opening between Hubbard Glacier and Gilbert Point.
The velocity of the water bouncing off the 300-foot-high glacier face causes the wave to rebound well into the channel.
Pushed against the glacier face by the bend in the channel, water tumbles back into the channel in its rush to the sea.
Oblique sunshine highlights a standing wave that makes the 300-foot-tall ice face seem small.
The narrow opening between Russell Fiord and Disenchantment Bay creates a nozzle effect with spectacular results.
Thousands of cubic feet of water funnell through the narrow channel, creating spectacular effects.
Turbulent water pouring out of Russell Fiord creates dangerous standing waves and white water.
Water streams out of newly opened Russell Fiord through a narrow channel bounded by sheer ice and rock cliffs.
The open waters of Russell Fiord contrast sharply with the rushing current at the narrow opening into Disenchantment Bay.
Icebergs and water tumble out of Russell Fiord and into a standing wave and rough water in Disenchantment Bay.
Water churns along the shore of Gilbert Point and icebergs eddy in the area in front of the glacier in Disenchantment Bay.
A view along the Disenchantment Bay face of the glacier shows a standing wall of water at the mouth of the newly opened channel.

The following photos were taken on August 15 and show the tide running from Disenchantment Bay into Russell Fjord at a much slower pace than it left the day before. The channel width is estimated at an average of about 900 feet. The last photo shows the water line of the former lake. All were taken by the National Park Service.

The smooth surface of the iceberg-dotted water mirrors the sheer walls of ice and rock on either side of the channel between Russell Fiord and Disenchantment Bay.
Muddy water flows with the tide through the channel between Hubbard Glacier and Gilbert Point.
The former water level scored a line in the face of the glacier which is clearly visible now that the water has dropped about 45 feet. The water below carries a load of silt and a few icebergs.
Updated 8/19/02

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