A 15 day trekking tour running 8th - 22nd August, departing from Reykjavik.
A wilderness journey deep into the pristine fjordlands of Arctic East Greenland. Travelling by boat and on foot, this expedition provides an opportunity to explore remote Arctic valleys, rugged mountain passes, iceberg-filled fjords and the rich summer tundra of the far north. Time spent in this area reveals the secrets of a land and a people little touched by modern culture.
East Greenland is a place like no other, and is a mouth-watering prospect for a keen trekker. During this 15 day tour we shall explore a world of dramatic winding fjords filled with giant icebergs, towering peaks and jagged ridges, enormous glaciers reaching down into the sea, deep valleys with crystal-clear salmon streams and, in summer, almost 24 hour light and warm sunny days. Greenland’s coastal mountains are not particularly high, but often they do rear up from sea level and so certainly have an Alpine scale and grandeur.
The valley floors over which we shall roam reveal a rich tapestry of life, frantically blooming and growing in the short and intense Arctic summer. A wide variety of plants and flowers can be found including saxifrage, speedwells, alpine gentians and arctic poppies, all adding splashes of colour to our route. Arctic willow is also common here – a direct relative to the tree as we know it, but never growing more than a few inches above the ground. It is an important area for marine life, and a variety of whales including Minke and Narwhal inhabit the area, as well as seals and walruses. On land, we may be lucky enough to see Arctic fox, hare and lemmings, and polar bears are also known to pass through.
Some parts of the trek shall follow the shores of enormous fjords, some of the largest in Greenland. The views across these to the mountains and glaciers beyond are spectacular. The waters are regularly choked with icebergs of all shapes and sizes, slowly making their way towards the open ocean from their birth place at the base of the vast glaciers that drain Greenland’s great inland icecap.
Sometimes our route shall take us further inland, over rugged passes and though high mountain ranges. This allows us to get up close to the starkly beautiful alpine grandeur of East Greenland. We shall experience a land that few have seen, a land of jagged peaks and lofty ridges, towering rock walls, tumbling glaciers and mountain streams, chaotic moraines from glaciers long since receded, and wild mountain lakes.
Wherever we travel there are no paths, and we shall make our own way along the route. This is a true Arctic wilderness, and uniquely it is home to a remarkable community that have adapted to its harsh beauty with infinite skill. All this, complete with a modern infrastructure with good medical facilities, is just 5 hours of flying time from Europe. And it is probably one of the safest and most secure countries in the World.
Click here to see a short report and some photos from our previous treks.
Click here to see the itinerary and summary details for the trek.