During the last ice age, large parts of the world were covered in ice sheets, while alpine glaciers carved out valleys and ribbed patterns. Glaciers also formed many of the features in places like Yosemite Valley, making them ideal for rock climbing. Fjords in northern countries like Canada, Norway, Iceland, and Greenland were also formed by ancient glaciers. The longest fjord in the world, ScorseSund, is located on the east coast of Greenland.
About 19,000 years ago, the Earth was in the midst of a massive ice age, during which there were ice sheets as far north as Wisconsin, most of England and Ireland, southern Germany, and most of present-day Russia. Canada, Norway, Sweden, Finland and much of Russia were uninhabitable, completely covered in ice. In other parts of the world, such as California, alpine glaciers were much larger and more pervasive, carving numerous features into the mountains that remain today.
A glacier forms when snow falls and does not melt, building up over centuries into sheets of ice between a few tens of feet and two miles thick. These carry tremendous weight, crushing the earth beneath them as they slowly flow down. They carve out paths known as glacial valleys. Alpine glaciers coalesce in areas where they can flow easily downhill, creating ribbed patterns between glacial “rivers” (cirques) and the “hills” between them (aretes). These glacial features remain thousands or millions of years after their initial formation.
Many of the amazing features in places like Yosemite Valley have been formed by glaciers. These areas have large tracts of exposed granite, formed when ice scraped away the overlying bedrock to reveal the underlying bedrock. Many of these granite surfaces lack true soils. The trees must grow in small crevices between the rocks. These granite surfaces are considered ideal for rock climbing and are visited by hundreds of thousands of people every year for this very purpose. The natural wonder of the surrounding glacial valleys provides an excellent backdrop for a challenging climb.
The coasts of many northern countries, especially those immediately adjacent to the Arctic, show landscapes covered with fjords, caused by ancient glaciers. Countries with fjord-covered coastlines include Canada, Norway, Iceland, and Greenland. Norway is among the most famous, with thousands of beautiful fjords. The longest fjord in the world, ScorseSund, stretches 217 miles (350km). It is located on the east coast of Greenland.
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