Greenland Adventure: Wild Arctic Hiking

Trip Overview

• Boat Supported Trekking Adventure
• 4 Nights Hotel or Huts, 7 Nights Tented Camp
• 2 Days Travel To and From Your Home

A trekking expedition in the pristine rugged high arctic with a follow boat and only carrying a small day pack. On our new for 2008 hiking journey, we invite you to join a small group of adventurers and hike in the Tassilaq Area. And we will do it in a enjoyable way – with boat support to bring along the gear – which will make the hiking more fun! When you arrive at camp in the afternoon, our boat drivers have established camp and the teapot is simmering. This trip is destined to be a “Classic” Arctic Hiking trip – it has the grandeur of the Alps but without the people – as well as the light of the High North and the best summer weather in Greenland. It is a remote and wild adventure – but very doable and safe for the hiking enthusiast.

We will begin at the small capital of Tassilaq and work our way on foot and by boat north through an archipelago, circling back to Tassilaq. The total hiking distance is about 80 miles. It is an exhilarating trek where an expeditionary spirit and a flexible attitude are musts. However, this beautiful, pristine and remote place will enrich your soul forever!

Greenland Photos

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Greenland Itinerary

Days 1 & 2. Home Departure from the US. Arrival Ammassalik Greenland. Leave your hometown and fly to Keflavik, Iceland. Transfer by bus from Keflavik to Reykjavik the morning of July 18 /Aug 1/ Aug 15. Early noontime flight to Kulusuk Island, Greenland. From Kulusuk we will board a small boat that will motor us 1.5 - 2 hours over to Tassilaq, which is the small administrative center of Eastern Greenland. If time permits, we will visit the local museum and hear Eskimo tales in the sod house. That evening we will stay at a small pension in town and get briefed on the next two weeks of adventures. Lunch and Dinner Hotel Accommodation in Tassilaq.

Day 3. Tassilaq - Qodlortoq River Camp - Lake 5: 8 to 9 hours. In the early morning we board an Inuit skiff and transport (1 hour) the group across King Oscar’s Harbour to the coast camp of Qodlortoq River Delta. From there we hike to Lake 5 in the middle of Ammassalik Island and stay at a local hunter’s cabin. We will bring only the sleeping gear and food necessary for one overnight. Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner … Mountain Hut.

Day 4. Lake 5 - Sarpaq Landing Site: 8 - 9 Hours. We hoist our light backpacks and continue our crossing of Tassilaq Island. At one point we skirt the glaciers that are on top of Ammassallik Island – looking into the eye of the Glacier Portal. The descent from the top down to the Sarpaq landing sites offers great views of the mighty Sermilik Fjord complex with blue and white sculptured icebergs floating by. Our Inuit skiff drivers and our camp will await us at the protected bay of Sarpaq. Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner … Wilderness Camping.

Day 5. Sarpaq Landing Site - Tinit - Amitsivartivik: 5 Hours. This day of hiking is easier after the two previous long days. We start crossing over Sarpaq Channel, where there is a great iceberg “Grave Yard” and some ancient Inuit sod house sites. We reach the tiny hamlet of Tinit. If the small shop is open in town, this is the last chance to buy an ice cream and send a postcard for a few days. Our next campsite is located a few hours easy hiking north of Tinit. Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner … Wilderness Camping.

Days 6 - 8. Amitsivartivik - Paarnakajit – Illinnera - Killikiatt: 6 hours, 8 hours and 5 hours, respectively. The next three days we follow the Eastern coast line of the Sermilik Fjord, making easy crossing of rivers if necessary. The hiking is spectacular and relatively easy. Our follow boat will run ahead each day and be ready for us at the next campsite. Be prepared for some of the most scenic campsites and mountain landscapes you can imagine. If the weather is good expect round-the-clock light as we are only a few minutes below the Arctic Circle! Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner … Wilderness Camping.

Day 9. Killikiaat Beach Camp Rest Day. Today we rest to prepare our minds and souls for the next day’s glacier crossing. We can also offer a boat ride into the bottom of the fjord – cruising up to marvel at the front edge of the vast glacier that originates in the Greenland ice cap and that calves humongous icebergs into the Arctic Ocean. Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner … Wilderness Camping.

Day 10. Killikiaat Beach Camp - Solporten - Qinngertivaq Fjord: 10 - 11 hours. Today is one of the absolute highlights of this Greenland wilderness trek! We don our crampons and grab our ice axes and our guide will lead us across the glacier’s “tongue” (very easy – no technical skills required) through Solporten – “The Gates of the Sun”. This perfectly shaped, glacier carved, U-shaped mountain formation is stunning and you feel like you are going through the entrance of the Arctic. It is a long day, but it is well worth it. On the opposite side of the Gates we reach the water and our trusted Inuit skiff drivers with our equipment. In the early evening we arrive at our final coastal camp to finish this great hiking adventure! Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner … Wilderness Camping.

Day 11. Qinngertivaq Fjord - Tassilaq. Boat Transport. We take a 3-4 hour boat ride back to where we started – the small town of Tassilaq. If we are lucky we might even be able to spot whales on the way home. In Tassilaq a warm shower awaits us and of course a celebratory dinner! Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner... Hotel Accommodation in Tassilaq.

Day 12. Tassilaq - Kulusuk - Reykjavik. We take a 1.5 hour boat ride to Kulusuk air strip for our flight connections to Reykjavik, Iceland. That night we stay at a five star hotel in Reykjavik. Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner... Hotel Odinsve.

Day 13. Departure from Reykjavik - Home. Morning at your own leisure in Reykjavik. Shuttle bus to Keflavik and afternoon flight back to the US. Breakfast … Return Home.