Knik Glacier, National Natural Landmark glacier in Chugach Mountains, Alaska, US

Knik Glacier is a large body of ice in the Chugach Mountains that flows down into a glacial lake with a prominent ice face. The glacier sits within a valley surrounded by high peaks and hanging ice formations that feed into the system below.

The glacier formed naturally over thousands of years and created the lake basin through ice erosion and movement. Dramatic flooding events that once shaped the landscape changed in 1967 when geological processes shifted the way water moved through the system.

The name Knik comes from Dena'ina and originally referred to the river; it translates as "fire". Early valley pioneers held a yearly lottery betting on the exact date the ice-dammed Lake George would burst and flood the Knik River Valley, closing the route between Anchorage and the Matanuska-Susitna Valley.

Access to the glacier is easiest from late spring through early fall, with multiple ways to reach and explore the ice depending on your preference. Bring warm layers and waterproof gear since weather can change quickly and the area around the ice stays cool and damp most of the year.

Lake George, at the glacier's face, is the largest glacier-dammed lake in North America and a National Natural Landmark. Until 1967 its ice dam broke annually, sending a jökulhlaup of water, ice and debris down the Knik River; early pioneers ran a yearly lottery on the date of the flood.