Tag Archives: Greenland

Prince Christian Sound – Part 2

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We continued our way through the Prince Christian Sound.

By now the traditional Hanseatic Pølser Party had started on the pool deck. Food (pølsers = Danish-style hot dogs) was offered – and drinks were flowing freely.

I nevertheless stayed up on the Sun Deck to a) avoid the music and b) get in the views, while we were going through the Southern bit of the Prince Christian Sound.

Of course this did not stop me from having the one or other pølser (with extra pickles of course) and punch (plus those suddenly appearing glasses of jenever).

When we hit the Southern mouth of the sound, nature had a special treat ready for us – a small group of orcas just in front of the ship … seemingly on the hunt for some prey.

Prince Christian Sound – Igdlorsuit

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The ship did stop at some point in the sound and we were invited for a shore landing at Igdlorsuit (which ultimately turned out our last shore landing before arriving in Iceland).

We made it over to the beach in an old glacial valley. A walk was offered to the front of the retreating glacier – a distance of about 1.5km / 1 mile one way through rough terrain. It turned out a nice walk through the autumn tundra – to (after climbing the glacier’s terminal moraine) get a great view of the glacier itself.

Prince Christian Sound – Part 1

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Today saw us crossing over from Greenland’s west coast to the east coast via the Prince Christian Sound.

We entered the sound in the early morning well before breakfast, but in time for a slow sunrise, that threw in amazing colors and quiet added to the mood.

My nickname for the sound: Lemaire Channel for beginners 😉

Life is a Bitch … if that’s all you get for breakfast

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The title says it all – right?

Like on my last trip, I ended up being one of the few, who had breakfast on the outer deck almost every morning. This time I had to skip for one morning in the Denmark Strait – the sea was simply to rough and the outside tables and chairs roped up and secured.

Below some photos of the views before and during breakfast this morning. Who needs breakfast, when you get to see this … ?

Disclaimer: I surely did have breakfast this morning … slowly starting with some tea – and then adding in all the other good stuff … makes life even feel bitchier – right? 😀

Hvalsey

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We had covered the 240km from the Ikka Fjord during the night; we were now in a side arm of Einars Fjord – just in front of the Hvalsey ruin site.

Hvalsey is a former Norse settlement. It is believed, that Hvalsey had been founded in the late 10th century by a cousin of Erik the Red; it was inhabited until the early 15th century, when the Norse colony essentially disappeared. Last recorded event here is awedding from 1418.

What remains today is a ruin site featuring a (fairly well preserved) church, the ruins of the great hall and community building. In the area directly around further ruins can be found, though their previous function remains a bit of mystery.

We made it ashore as usual and then had some time to explore the ruin site, but also the surrounding area … below some photographic evidence.

Ikka Fjord – Ikaites here we come …

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After the visit to the former cryolite mine of Ivittuut this morning, another interesting mineral was waiting for us this afternoon – ikaite, also dubbed as the melting mineral – as it decomposes into calcite and water once the temperature reaches around 8°C / 46°F.

The mineral had first been discovered in a fjord close to the Ivittuut mine – the Ikka fjord (hence the mineral’s name ikaite). In that fjord – under water – towers of that mineral of 10 meters and more can be found.

During lunch the ship had moved over to the Ikka fjord, where a local ranger boat was already waiting for us. Hanseatic had to stay outside the area with the ikaite, so zodiacs were prepared and then boarded.

Following the ranger boat an armada of about ten zodiacs made it into the ikaite area. Most eyes were now fixed on the water, aiming to see one of the towers at an expected meter underneath the surface. There was no luck here – with the water still murky from the storm some days back. Also it did not help, that we did the zodiac trip during high tide – the top ends of the columns must have been like a good two meters away from the surface – so bad luck, when combined with with the murkiness of the water.

Nature however did compensate for that – and threw in a load of musk oxen, as well as a brace of sea eagles.

 

What – Cryolite does not ring a bell?

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Indeed – cryolite is probably not part of, what one would consider common knowledge … and – I have to admit, before the landing in Ivittuut this morning I did not really know anything about cryolite either …

Cryolite – in a nutshell (and I don’t even dare going into more detail – feel free to check wikipedia or to ask a trustworthy geologist) – is a rate mineral (Na3AlF6), which was used as catalyst in the aluminum refining industry. The biggest known deposit of cryolite was at what later became the mine of Ivittuut; mining here began in the second half of the 19th century – and came to its height during world war 2 with its ever-growing demand for aluminum. In the late 1980s the deposits were pretty much depleted, also it was now possible to synthesize cryolite, hence the mine was eventually closed and abandoned in 1987 – – leaving the old structures and a small lake (i.e. the water-filled hole from the open pit mine) behind.

There was loads here to explore – from the old mining buildings to the small lake to the surrounding tundra with plenty of plant life. Excavated rock material made the area interesting for those with an interest into geology (with sparkling and colorful stones – often with pockets of white cryonite – lying around the whole area).

I made my turn first through the old miners’ village to the lake and then into the tundra back country. Here two groups of musk oxen had been spotted – and we ended up watching them from a distance.

All in all this turned out a very multi-sided landing … a bit of industrial history, a bit of nature all topped off by some very, very old rocks.