Exit Glacier was named after the first recorded crossing of which icefield?

Exit Glacier was named after the first recorded crossing of the Harding Icefield. The name refers to the glacier serving as the expedition’s route of descent and exit from the icefield.

That crossing took place in spring 1968, when the first documented mountaineering party traveled from Chernof Glacier eastward to Resurrection Glacier. A newspaper reported that the group would descend the “Exit Glacier,” and the name subsequently became established for the glacier.

Ten people were involved in the crossing, including Alaskan figures Yule Kilcher and his son Otto. Only four members—Bill Babcock, Dave Johnston, Yule Kilcher and Vin Hoeman—traveled all the way across the icefield. The party also made the first ascent of Truuli Peak, which rises to 6,612 feet near the icefield’s edge.

Exit Glacier is an outlet glacier of the Harding Icefield in Alaska’s Kenai Mountains. It is unusually accessible, with roads and trails leading near its terminus, but that accessibility also makes its retreat easy to observe. The glacier receded about 187 feet between 2013 and 2014, underscoring its value as a visible sign of a changing climate.