John Limon paddleboards past an iceberg grounded in Portage Lake near the Begich, Boggs Visitor Center on Sunday, April 14, 2019. (Bill Roth / ADN)
People who arrived at the Portage Lake parking lot at the end of Portage Valley in Chugach National Forest on Sunday were pleasantly surprised to see the icebergs along the shore.
An iceberg the size of a two-story house, along with numerous smaller icebergs, floated in the lake near the Begich, Boggs Visitor Center.
Icebergs were more common decades ago when the terminus of the Portage Glacier was still visible. The Begich, Boggs Visitor Center is open May 25 through Sept. 2.
Icebergs grounded near shore in Portage Lake near the Begich, Boggs Visitor Center on Sunday, April 14, 2019. (Bill Roth / ADN)
John Limon paddleboards past an iceberg grounded in Portage Lake near the Begich, Boggs Visitor Center on Sunday, April 14, 2019. (Bill Roth / ADN)
A barefoot Grant Gibbs carries an iceberg to shore at Portage Lake on Sunday, April 14, 2019. (Bill Roth / ADN)
Bubbles trapped inside glacial ice from Portage Glacier are illuminated by sunshine as it rests on the shore of Portage Lake on Sunday, April 14, 2019. (Bill Roth / ADN)
Icebergs from Portage Glacier traveled about three miles across Portage Lake before grounding near the Begich, Boggs Visitor Center on Sunday, April 14, 2019. The vistor center will be open May 25 to Sept. 2. (Bill Roth / ADN)
Jon Rippe and John Limon carry paddleboards to the parking lot on Sunday, April 14, 2019, after they paddled across Portage Lake to Portage Glacier, where they witnessed the glacier calving. (Bill Roth / ADN)
A few days earlier, waves on Portage Lake crashed into icebergs as winds gusted to 60 mph at the Begich, Boggs Visitor Center on Thursday, April 11.
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