VOYAGES - GREENLAND, SVALBARD & CANADA 2008

Northeast Greenland - Spitsbergen

East Greenland

High Arctic Explorer

Baffin Island Explorer

Northeast Greenland - Spitsbergen

This adventurous cruise is "two in one"! It provides the rare opportunity to see both the remote north-east coast of Greenland and compare and contrast its spectacular scenery, enormous ice-cap and majestic mountains with those of Spitsbergen. To visit these areas in the past required a camping and trekking expedition. Now you can experience the remarkable arctic landscape from the comfort of a ship with expeditions ashore to visit Inuit sites and see the plants, birds and mammals. This cruise will provide opportunities to see walruses and polar bears.

East Greenland

Bearded Seal

The autumn is the best time to explore the coast of East Greenland because the ice floes have usually dispersed and there is the best opportunity of getting into the fjords and bays. The days are still very long but the colours on the tundra are autumnal reds and yellows. We will see the resident mammals such as muskoxen, seals, and, we hope, narwhal. We visit a modern settlement where we have the opportunity to witness traditional and modern Greenlandic culture as well as wander among the ruins of former cultures.

This is a late summer voyage to beautiful areas on Devon Island, the south coast of Ellesmere Island, the far North West of Greenland and the North of Baffin Island. The voyage will pass through some of the largest seabird colonies of the High Arctic. We shall sail amongst enormous icebergs and search for humpback, blue and minke whales with a good chance of seeing narwhal and polar bears. The voyage will begin and end in Resolute Bay in Canada. Kayaking is available on this voyage at extra cost.

This voyage covers almost every aspect of the modern High Arctic from the frozen desolation of Cornwallis Island to the relative modernity of Iqaluit via the long-settled coasts of West Greenland and the hunting community of Pond Inlet. En route the ship will visit fishing communities, the whalers' over-wintering haven of Cumberland Sound, the seabird colonies of Prince Leopold Island and the graves on Beechey Island of some of the early victims of the 1845 Franklin Expedition. In 2008 this voyage offers one of the better opportunities to view the total solar eclipse.