We are exploring Greenland once more. After our adventures in Arctic Canada and a couple of days exploring the ice, we made landfall in northwestern Greenland this morning.
Just after 5 a.m., before most of us were awake, we passed the community of Qaanaaq, near Thule Air Base (the United States Air Force’s northernmost base), on our way towards Bowdoin Fjord. The fjord was full of icebergs and the incredibly calm conditions created extraordinary reflections all around us.
On shore, we found lush tundra everywhere. With a warmer current running up this coast and some more protected habitat, we walked in cushions of moss, blueberry, and heather. Many of us followed a small stream into a gentle valley, and those of us who could climb a little higher had an opportunity to look out over a large glacier and up to the Greenland ice sheet itself.
On our way out of the fjord, the reflections and spectacular ice continued. Rather than turning west back to Baffin Bay, we continued east as our ship began exploring new territory. We had never been further inside this system of bays and glaciers before.
Many guests crowded onto the bridge to look for a good place to land. We saw a small settlement and several hunting camps along the way before our expedition leader, Russ Evans, went scouting by Zodiac. He found an interesting camp where hunters had recently been, and we took the opportunity to hike up some more hills and to explore the soft and sandy beach—a rare find up here!
During dinner we cruised past Qaanaaq once more, on our way south to see what else we can discover.
