We see them as slabs of ice, some all white, some clear with rock debris to clutter them, some almost blue in color. But, glaciers actually have a story of their very own. Over time, as the snow deepens, it creates a dense layer of ice. With the help of gravity and seasonal changes, as the glacier grows, it descends down the mountain. Glaciers are in and of themselves sculptures of sorts.
Glaciers are unique in that they carve a whole valley into a U shape.
Glaciers are also responsible for moving large formations of rock, breaking them and leaving rock deposits here, there and everywhere. It is safe to say that a glacier will take just about anything in its path only to leave it in the very spot where the glacier eventually stops and melts. Geologically, glacial ice is classified as rock, rather than liquid. Ice is not new to the Northwest, in fact, it is very old. During the last Ice Age, about 25,000 to 13,000 years ago, much of the Cascade range was covered in total ice.