Kennicott Glacier Melt Pool in the Moraine
“Kennicott Melt Pool” original painting in pointillism by Gail Niebrugge, original painting sold, limited edition prints sold out a few Artist Proofs are available.
One day while poking around the rubble of the historic copper mine looking for a fresh subject to paint or a new view of the Kennicott, I decided to hike out onto the glacier moraine to see things from a different perspective. Moraine is dirt and gravel on top of glacier ice, and not easy to traverse. I slipped and slid up and down slopes and canyons until I came to the highest ridge in the vicinity. Sounds of rocks falling into water concerned me as I scrambled to the top, I froze when I saw an almost vertical drop of 20-30′ to a bottomless pool of water below! There is no escape from a fall into this chasm. Surviving immediate hypothermia without ice ax, ropes, crampons and pitons, would be all over but for the screaming. With these thoughts on my mind, I circumnavigated the melt pool and found this amazing scene to paint on the opposite side. I chose a longer, safer route back, and it was even longer before my adrenaline to return to normal. Today this melt pool does not exist.
More tomorrow,
Gail Niebrugge, Art of Alaska
