Rocking the river to provide protection along Airport Dike Trail as possibility of glacial flood rises

Workers seeking to stabilize site that suffered erosion during previous flooding; trail set to reopen by early August

Workers place rock armoring along the Mendenhall River adjacent to the Emergency Vehicle Access Road near Juneau International Airport on Monday, July 21, 2025. (Laurie Craig / Juneau Independent)

Work is progressing on the Juneau Airport’s Mendenhall River bank stabilization project which has caused a temporary closure of the Airport Dike Trail, officially known as the Emergency Vehicle Access Road (EVAR).

On Monday afternoon, a dump truck deposited a load of large rocks onto the bank of the Mendenhall River adjacent to the EVAR. An excavator operator then placed the rocks individually to stabilize the site after repeated glacier lake outburst floods eroded the embankment. A section about 110 feet long is being reinforced.

The trail reopening date is pending, but possibly earlier than the currently scheduled end of July or early August.

The riverbank stabilization project is being performed for the airport by Island Contractors Inc. during low-tide periods. The Mendenhall River is subject to large variations in water level at this location due to significant tidal influence limiting safe operation of the rock armoring.

• Contact Laurie Craig at lauriec@juneauindependent.com.

https://video.wixstatic.com/video/b4f3f8_7124843f82414d64b4ef2b9048b65ee1/720p/mp4/file.mp4

A worker places rocks along the bank of the Mendenhall River on July 21, 2025. (Laurie Craig / Juneau Independent)