Helicopter ride from Juneau,Alaska, to see the glaciers

I am quite excited about the helicopter ride we are about to take,  we fly from a helicopter pad just outside Juneau, the capital city of Alaska.  I haven't been in a helicopter before. Rob has.  It's a clear day, great for flying.  The ride is FANTASTIC!  Seeing the glaciers from the air is hard to describe.

It's a small helicopter, takes the pilot, another in the front, and three behind. 

We all wear headphones, so we can speak to each other.

Robs "co-pilot" with the best view.  It's really scary lifting off,  but I soon get used to it, and LOVE the views.

So exciting to fly close to the mountain capped peaks.

It's different to see the mountains and snow looking down at them..

The first glacier we fly over is Taku, (named by the Tlingit people, the indigenous people of Alaska) it's gathered up dirt as it moves, so looks quite dirty.. Taku is the deepest and thickest known glacier in the world..... It's roughly 1,500 Meters deep and 60 kilometers long. We are surprised by how ridged the snow is, and also how the side of the cliffs get scoured by the movement and pressure of the ice.

We fly to the edge of the glacier, the thickness of the ice is astonishing.

A chunk of ice had broken off the Glacier ( ice calving) showing the blue ice caused by the ice being compacted. The "calf" is about three storeys high, gives an idea of the enormous amount of ice.

We plan to explore Juneau later... More pics tomorrow.