Climbing Athabasca Glacier in Jasper National Park, Alberta, Canada, as the Aurora Borealis glows

© Paul Zizka/Aurora Photo

Ice climbing at Athabasca. Up on the glacier

Athabasca Glacier is the most-visited glacier in North America. Located in Canada’s Jasper National Park, it’s one of the six ‘toes’ of the Columbia Icefield, a natural feature of the Canadian Rockies. Athabasca has receded by nearly a mile in the past 125 years, losing about 16 feet of ice each year. Most who visit hike up to the edge of the glacier. Some, with the right gear and permits, hike on Athabasca itself. And in the case of our photo today, a select few climb some of Athabasca’s ice walls. That’s the Aurora Borealis in the background. But you don’t need to climb a glacier to appreciate that.