This gallery contains 18 photos.
We had cruised over to Disko Island during the night; the captain had maneuvered the ship into the little bay just outside Queqertarsuaq, Disko Island’s main town (with around 900 inhabitants) and a day around the islands network of walking … Continue reading
This gallery contains 16 photos.
Now that we had seen the icefjord, it was time to actually get a glimpse of its product. We left Ilulissat and made it out into the Disko Bay for a close encounter with the icebergs recently produced by the … Continue reading
At the airport we were picked up by the same bus, which had brought us to the airport earlier on. We were now transferred to the starting point for the short hike from the outskirts of Ilulissat to a number of view points overlooking the icefjord.
Following a boarded walkway I made my view towards the fjord – with the first icy bits already showing up in the background. These grew bigger and bigger the closer I got – until I finally made it to the first view point.
I now had a superb view of the icefjord and its (unbelievable) beauty – and this time with the right frame of reference to actually get an understanding of the sheer size and magnitude of the icefjord – and the amount of ice floating down the fjord.
I spent a bit more time just watching and enjoying this special moment (and really the reason for me being here) – before making it into town for a bit of exploration there, to then head back for the ship.
In retrospect I have to say, the combination of helicopter and walk made perfect sense – thus getting in both views and angles – – to ultimately put a more complete picture of the icefjord together. The flight provided the ‘end-to-end’ view (from the icecap to the iceberg in the bay), while the walk was the more ‘intimate’ experience, that also gave a clear feel of size. For me this was indeed probably the highlight of the trip – and clearly the right point in time to throw in some celebratory champagne for lunch 😉
Today was THE DAY … the day, why I had booked this trip … hoping it would turn out better this time – with access to Ilulissat and as such the opportunity to see the icefjord.
Things worked out this time, the bay was (relatively) free of ice, Hanseatic easily maneuvered to its anchor point just in front of town; tender ships were used to get us a ashore.
I had booked the helicopter flight to get a glimpse of the ice fjord from slightly higher up – and also to see the ice flowing in from the ice cap and the Sermeq Kujalleq glacier.
I was in the first group to go … a bus was picking us up from the port, bringing us to the airport. Here – after a short safety briefing – we boarded the helicopter (a Bell 212) and were on our way for a 20 minute flight out to the ice fjord with views of the icecap, then across the fjord and out towards the bay – and back to the airport.
While the views during the flight were amazing, it was fairly impossible to put things into perspective. There are no reference points here, so it all felt very abstract, without a real sense of size … one has to know, that we were looking at five to seven kilometers from one bank of the fjord to the other.
We made our way to the mouth into the bay. It is here, that an underwater threshold blocks the ice from freely flowing into the bay. Pressure needs to build up before icebergs are released into the bay. The threshold was clearly visible from the helicopter – as a clear line separating the fjord from the bay. After a quick circle flying over some icebergs and the ship we made it back to Ilulissat’s airport.
This gallery contains 20 photos.
Just after dinner (the traditional festive welcome dinner) we had left the safety of the fjord and made it out into the waters of the Davis Strait – taking a Southern course and as such going with the waves – … Continue reading
The weather forecast had predicted a stormy night. The captain therefore had decided to not continue into the Davis Strait – but to stay at a sheltered location in the fjord. This turned out to be the right decision, as a force 12+ storm was sweeping over us during the night.
The storm was slowly abating, however conditions were still not good enough, for us to continue into the Davis Strait – we therefore made the way back to Kangerlussuaq, where some provisions were still waiting for us (the loading had to be discontinued yesterday due to the water becoming to rough).
Meanwhile the expedition team had put together plans for a first landing in the fjord (about an hour south of Kangerlussuaq). The landing itself was fairly unspectacular, but nevertheless a nice opportunity to get off the ship, to get reacquainted with the zodiacs and into nature for a nice afternoon tundra stroll.
My last trip to Greenland had been two years ago – my motivation back then had been to see the ice fjord near Ilulissat with my own eyes. It did not work out back then – the fjord had produced too many icebergs, that then had disintegrated – essentially resulting in the Disko Bay being full of ice and essentially not navigable.
So – it had to be another time, another trip and another adventure, which now – two years later – was about to start.
This time the flight to Kangerlussuaq did start from Düsseldorf – once again a charter flight, this time operated by Titan Airways, a British charter airline. We made it to Kangerlussuaq an hour behind schedule.
On arrival buses were waiting for us for a quick ride around the back country of Kangerlussuaq – and to get the first feel of Greenland and a glimpse of the icecap. The tour turned out a shorter version of the tour from two years back (probably due to the delayed flight).
We finally made it back through town and then to the little port, where tender boats were waiting for us to get us to the cruise ship – MS Hanseatic.
This weekend saw me heading out to the Elbe river between Dresden and Meißen. Wine has been cultivated in the valley here for centuries – and this weekend (following hint from a friend) there was an open winery event, with many wineries open to the public including special programs, offers and entertainment – and a (not overly well organized) shuttle bus between wineries.
This wine growing region here is one of the smallest in Germany – and given that, its output and its (relative) geographic isolation (in the far east of Germany), the region and its wines are fairly little known in the rest of the country.
So the weekend turned out a major exploration … the one side of course being the (for me completely new) landscape of the Elbe valley from the river up to the steep slopes of the surrounding hills … and then on the other side the viticultural output of that landscape.
The landscape did barely disappoint – the wines were as one would expect, when blindly going on a (massive) wine tasting … some were bad, some fairly average, some good – and the little rest simply amazing.
Below some evidence of the landscape … for the wines, better go and judge yourself – these three might be (in my view at least) good starting points: DREI HERREN, Weingut Schuh and Weingut Vincenz Richter.
This gallery contains 16 photos.
Amazing how five years have passed since the last documenta in 2012 … similar to back then, I made it up to Kassel with a friend to a glimpse of this year’s edition of this exhibition of contemporary art. It … Continue reading
Today was my last day in California – and no photos today.
Lisa and Harry had invited some family and friends for a small party this evening, so the day was dedicated for the preparations. Harry and myself ended up going for a wine errand – Lisa wanted some specific wine, so we made it over to the Lodi region to fetch those wines – and while there (of course) also check out and try some other wines. My gut tells me, that she probably also wanted us out of the way for the preparations – but then, why argue … when you are sent to buy and try some wine!? 😉
We made it back in the afternoon; in time to cover our part in the preparation and then engage into the party later on. It turned out an interesting one with good discussions.
I left very early the next morning, flying over to Los Angeles, then on to New York for the final hop towards Frankfurt – where I arrived Monday morning.
Looking back – this has been an incredible 1.5 weeks, full of action, great outdoors, superb food and drinks – and of course perfect company and hosts – THANKS Lisa and Harry – it’s been a great time!