Alaska Railroad and Ascending Path Join to Offer Rail Travel Glacier Hiking Tours

May 18, 2012 By: Danielle Stepongzi

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Alaska Railroad and local guide service Ascending Path will offer Alaska visitors an opportunity to pair glacier hiking and ice climbing with rail travel through the state's backcountry territory this summer.

Guests board the Glacier Discovery Train in Anchorage, Girdwood, Whittier or Portage for the glacier-based tours.  Hikers meet their guide on the train and hop off at the Alaska Railroad's Spencer Whistle Stop, located in the heart of the Chugach National Forest.

Three trips will be available this summer:
*The Iceberg Hike: a mellow hike to the glacier's edge with an interpretative naturalist.
*The Glacier Hike: guests don crampons and helmets and get out on the ice.
*Ice Climbing: guests learn to use ice axes in vertical walls of ice from experienced guides.

After a tour is complete, guests board the train and back to their point of embarkation. The full tour can be booked through the Alaska Railroad or through Ascending Path. Tours are available throughout the course of Alaska's peak summer season.