The Canadian Arctic hosts the largest volume of glaciers outside the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets and, under Arctic amplification, has become one of the top contributors to sea level rise. Here I will discuss the methods used to monitor glacier response including field-based, remote sensing, and modelling approaches. Examples will primarily draw from the glaciers of the Expedition Fiord region on Axel Heiberg Island, Nunavut, which hosts one of Canada’s longest running glacier monitoring programs. It is the site of several foundational studies dating back the 1960-1970s that have informed our understanding of Arctic glacier dynamics today. This rich record of historic research has facilitated a multidecadal perspective on glacier change and governing processes, and allows us to reflect on the evolution of research practices over the past half-century.