Oceanwide Expeditions

RVR05 West Greenland - Whale Safari 2012

RVR05

Day 1 - If you arrive from Reykjavik to Nuuk airport on the regularly scheduled evening flight (flight not included in the voyage cost) you will be transferred  to the ship, which will depart late in the evening to the north. Passengers who have arrived on earlier flights will have time to do some individual sightseeing. Nuuk (Godthåb), the capital of Greenland has a population of about 16.000  people. You could visit the museum which has a collection of Inuit mummies,  from the 15th Century, which were found near Uummannaq. The Cultural Centre of Greenland - Katuak which has exhibitions of  Greenlandic artists, is also worth visiting. There are historical buildings from colonial times and bookstores with books about Greenland. The waters to the west of the town are a good place to see Humpback Whales.

Day 2 - In Søndre Isortoq at Ivnnarssuaq in the Manitsoq area we visit a large seabird colony with Kittiwakes and Brünnich's Guillemots.

Day 3 - We sail past Manitsoq to reach the fantastic landscapes of the Evighedsfjord. There we visit a large seabird colony at Taaterat (Kittiwake) and sail along the nearby glacier front.

Day 4 - We arrive at Sydbay (Ukivik), where the 18th Century whalers traded with the Eskimo’s at the occasion of the yearly Assivik, when people from a large area come together, on a beautiful sandy beach. We land also at nearby Isortoq where remains of houses from the Thule culture can be found. In this area we may also see Reindeer.

Day 5 - The island groups of Hunde Ejland and Kronprinsens Ejland, at the mouth of Disko Bay, are surrounded by rich waters which attract both seabirds and whales. We intend to call at the small settlement on Hunde Eijland where old dwellings of Greenlands’s Thule culture (dating from the 11th Century) and graves from 18th Century Dutch whalers can be seen. Later we will make Zodiac excursions in the beautiful narrows of the Kronprinsens Ejland archipelago. This day we will have good opportunities to observe foraging Greenland Whales at the mouth of Disko Bay.

Day 6 - Another day of opportunities to see Greenland Whales, when we sail to Disko Island and land at Engelskmandens Havn and Fortunebay near Qeqertarsuaq (Godhavn), where there are warm springs.

Day 7 - Today we find ourselves just south of the large Jakobshavn Glacier with its enormous ice- bergs. We climb the hill at Avangnardlit from where we have a fantastic view across the Jakobshavn Isfjord, which is a World Heritage site. In the afternoon we sail  to Ilullissa,t provided we are not prevented access to the port by heavy ice.

Day 8 - We arrive in Aasiaat a settlement which was created in the 17th century to support the whaling at the mouth of Disko Bay. Its port is ice free  from late spring to early winter.  We board the charter plane from Aasiaat to Reykjavik (flight not included in the voyage cost).