Ilulissat, Avannaata, GreenlandDAWN GLOWS: A GLORIOUS MORNING IN ILULISSAT
A Snow Mobile Trip to an Icefjord Look Out
We awoke to a glorious sun-drenched morning. Looking out of the guest house windows, an early dawn reflected upon stunning, brilliantly illuminated icebergs and the deep azure waters of Disko Bay. The scenery with its stark contrasting colours, was breathtaking. And there was not a soul in sight. Anywhere....
Being early morning people, we crept into the bathroom at 5:30 am, hoping we could shower and use the bathroom facilities before Halla and Íris awoke. As it happened, they were later morning people and as we had hoped, we were well out of the way before they rose for the day. To our delight, we had also found another toilet and bathroom, making everyone's lives a lot more relaxed.
And to my relief, Alan was feeling good and would undertake the snowmobiling tour scheduled for that morning, as well as the afternoon boat trip out to the icebergs of Disko Bay. Sadly, and unlike what Andreas (our first travel agent) had promised us, visiting Disko Island was not on our tour agenda.
Our snowmobile tour was scheduled for 9:00 am but Miraida had called to say it was postponed to 10:30 am because the snowmobile trails needed clearing of heavy snow from the evening before. Goodness knows when it had snowed as the night before had been picture perfect for our photos of the Aurora Borealis.... But weather as we well know, can be unbelievably changeable in the Arctic.
Our Snowmobile Trip Begins
I must say I was apprehensive about our snowmobile tour. Both of us had accidents and frightening past experiences in Russia, and knew just how dangerous snowmobiles could be. But what to wear? Despite being a beautifully sunny day, conditions were forecast to be cold, and Miraida warned us to come with all the necessary cold weather gear we had. I guess she would have had no idea how well prepared we were but as it happened we were very much over-dressed. It was no one's fault, but as usual it was absolutely impossible to assess suitable attire for the conditions.
To our delight, our tour seemed to be very well organised. We were even picked up at our guest house and taken to the Unique Tours snowmobile hire centre in the middle of Ilulissat town, where we again met with David, the only other member of our morning tour. We were provided with some very stylish "racing motor-bike look alike space suits" as well as massive helmets and thermal gloves. Despite wearing our Columbia top of the range "Bugaboo" padded pants over hiking pants, fleecy tops and thermal underwear, our tour guides insisted that we wear the provided "space suits" over the top.
Looking like ridiculous bumbling astronauts, barely able to move under the weight and bulk of far too much gear, we were introduced to our very flash snowmobiles and our drivers who would thankfully pillion us on our tour. The worst part were the helmets. Once on, I just could not remove mine without help. But as the wind visor kept falling down and I couldn't prise it upward, no one could hear me anyway. Oh, claustrophobia! I felt like I was in a fishbowl.... But at least my head was safe....
Our drivers were delightful guys of varying ages and backgrounds. Simon, an older Inuit man approached me straight away, saying very definitely "I'll take you" (I was pleased. Simon looked steady and reliable).
Lars, a younger Inuit fellow took Alan (he looked steady too) but poor David had Patrick - a handsome, charismatic young man who despite being absolutely charming, was a total hoon.
If anything, we certainly looked the part, wearing our Jack Brabham (former Australian Formula One world racing champion) look-alike colourful suits and sturdy racing helmets. We set off in fine style, speeding up the main street into Ilulissat and soon tearing onto a network of simply gorgeous steep winding snowmobile trails on our trip to an Icefjord lookout, about 14 km east of the city.
Patrick, of course tore off first, followed by Simon and me and then Lars and Alan. Unfortunately, I had no chance to take any photos of our journey, nor could I even turn my head because of the weight of my helmet to see if Alan was alright. Not that I could do much for him, anyway. The trip was challenging, punctuated with massive moguls and steep high snowy hills. And I must admit, I was pleased I wasn't driving.
During our wild yet stunningly beautiful journey, I was reminded of our trip in 2022 when we were forced to make a mad dash on a snowmobile and sled to catch our flight from Saskylakh to Yakutsk in Yakutia, Russia after our car had become hopelessly bogged during a blizzard on the Arctic Anabar River ice road. We had lost our travel guide Ed and also Alan when they fell off the sled after hitting a large mogul. No one was hurt but it was a bit too exciting.... I just hoped this trip was at least a bit more comfortable - and safer - for poor Alan....
A Stop at the Icefjord Look Out
Initially, I felt sorry for David. Patrick was a very fast driver and to fill in time while he waited for Lars and Simon, he entertained himself and presumably David, by doing endless donuts and sideways wheel skids across frozen icy areas along our route. It looked highly dangerous to us. But to his credit, David took it all in his stride. Actually, he looked pretty happy and I must say, I had a sneaking suspicion there was a bit of a young "hoon" in our David....
Interestingly, when I asked Simon how fast the snowmobiles could travel, I was told, they could easily manage up to 120 km per hour. "How fast we were going" I asked. "Oh, only about 80 km per hour," Simon replied. As I soon learnt, I should not have asked the question....
We arrived at the Icefjord look out in about forty minutes. The views were breathtaking. And oh, it was such a relief to have my helmet removed by Simon, and to take in some fresh air. A few other snowmobilers arrived but to our relief, we could absorb the stunning scenery of the Icefjord coastline in almost total silence. Here is a video of our view: https://youtu.be/amE0qGZYcao
Meanwhile, Alan was not looking at all well. He was apparently feeling so sick and weak that he was unable to get off his snowmobile and once again, missed out on what was a wonderful opportunity to experience views of the mighty Icefjord. Looking shocking, his condition was really worrying and I suggested that we leave early to go back to Ilulissat. But as usual, he insisted on soldiering on....
Our Trip Back to Ilulissat. A Stop at an Igloo "Hotel"
On our way back to Ilulissat, we stopped for some time at an igloo "hotel" on the edge of a large, wide flat valley. We could buy some snack foods and we also had the opportunity if we wanted, to take the snowmobiles for a ride on our own, as the going was safe and flat. I declined, staying with Alan whose condition was not improving. And after all, we had ridden snowmobiles on plenty of other occasions. David however, took the opportunity - obviously enjoying the time to be out on his own.
"Wendy, I will take you on a special ride. To a place I really like" offered Simon. The thought passed through my mind "I don't even know this guy. And where we were going, leaving Alan and David behind?"
We drove what felt like a long way, actually about ten kilometers from our igloo site, along flat easy country surrounded by lovely snow hills and pristine valleys. Just as I was starting to wonder where this was all going to end, Simon turned our snow mobile. Gunning the machine, we took off at the rate of knots. The worst part was the G-Force, throwing my heavily helmeted head back as we rapidly increased our speed along the flat valley. I have never heard of anyone actually losing their head on a snowmobile ride but by then I was convinced it was a distinct possibility. And we just went faster and faster. Of course, there was no way I could communicate with the now crazed Simon. I just had to hang on.... And I must confess, it was enormously exhilarating. And apparently, we did hit the magic speed of 100 km per hour.....
Arriving back at the igloo site, Simon announced "Well, you now know that these machines can easily reach 100km per hour". Hmm….. I had never been unconvinced in the first place. But it was a bit late by now.... Alan had missed my whole adventure but thankfully I had David as a witness.... And well, it was quite an adventure.
We spent a long time sitting around at the igloo hotel; our three drivers seemingly unperturbed that we had a boat cruise scheduled for 2:00 pm. We mentioned our cruise departure time around midday but still, no one seemed to worry. And as so often happens in life, you can sit around forever, and then all hell breaks loose; almost as if being late was your fault.... Someone must have twigged as in no time our drivers had us boarded back on the snowmobiles and literally hurtling back toward Ilulissat. Here is a video of the igloo accommodation site: https://youtu.be/gF5c3Xj-zXE
We travelled a different route on our return journey - and one that took us over very steep cliffs and massive moguls. And for a lot of the time, our snowmobiles appeared to be airborne. It didn't take much to work out that it was a shorter trail, and we were badly running out of time. I wasn't helped by suffering from acute motion sickness. And how awful would be to puke all down Simon's back, I thought....
Back at the snowmobile hire centre, because we were running so late, we were instructed to undress quickly from our snow space suits. Something a lot easier said than done, especially for poor Alan. Weighed down from all the clothing, we were hot and sweaty and removing our suits in a hurry was almost impossible. In an effort - I expect - to help me, Simon began trying to rip off my suit and before I knew it, my phone had fallen onto the floor, together with a very unpleasant wet handkerchief. It was becoming very testing of my patience.
A sudden loud thud. Alan had again collapsed and was lying on his side on the floor with poor David trying to assist him. As mentioned, there is rather a lot of Alan when he is horizontal. Thankfully, he still had his helmet on as he fell headfirst onto the concrete floor. He was not injured but it didn't add to our humour as we were bundled into a taxi and taken to the boat harbour. There was no time for thanks or farewells. We were off....
Alan's frequent fainting issues were however, becoming more than a real worry.... In hindsight, I now wonder why we didn't get him medical help. But as we were to later find, it wouldn't have helped anyway....
A BOAT CRUISE ON THE ICEFJORD
We just made our cruise in time before our Disko Line Explorer charter boat departed.
On boarding the vessel however, it was the really first time we had really taken in how many tourists were in Ilulissat. The boat was absolutely packed with people, both downstairs in a seated area as well as all over the decks.
The cruise of the Icefjord and Disko Bay was of course, particularly popular with keen photographers, all vying for the best vantage point where they could take their perfect shots. Several photography groups were on board, including the very pleasant Pakistani man and his group who we met at the Icefjord Hotel restaurant on our first morning.
As the boat cruised around the south-western end of the fjord, those seated below the deck could listen to a short presentation provided by one of the crew. It was well done, providing interesting information about the calving of the icebergs, their impact on world sea levels and also of the dangers of vessels travelling in Disko Bay, risking a sudden and unpredictable breakdown of an iceberg. And even a tsunami caused by the rapid rise in seawater.
Disko Bay is the largest open bay in Greenland. It also constitutes a wide southern inlet of nearby Baffin Bay, Canada. It measures 100 km by 150 km, has an average depth of 400 m and an average water temperature of +3.5°C (-7.5°C in winter to 12.0°C in summer). Sea animals found in Disko Bay include walrus, narwhal, beluga whales and bowhead whales.
At the north-eastern end of the bay lies the giant Icefjord (also known as the Jakobshavn Fjord). As mentioned in the previous chapter, it is the most productive glacier in the Northern Hemisphere, calving off more than 35 billion tons of ice per year. Interestingly, about 90% of all icebergs off the Labrador and Newfoundland coast originate from the glaciers of Greenland.
With the passengers so deadly serious about their photography, it was difficult to secure a good spot from which to take photos. And no wonder. The bay was laden with wonderful icebergs, ranging from the size of a small island to large chunks of floating ice. It was a nature lovers' and photographers' paradise. The icebergs, unlike glaciers clogged with dirt and moraine, were all absolutely pristine. Glistening silver-white.
We were surprised to hear from our nice photographer friends that they were doing a double trip and would return back out into Disko Bay in the early evening after our boat had returned.
Other passengers were not so pleasant, and there was quite some pushing and shoving amongst the photographers to hold the best positions. At one stage I spotted some beluga whales; their beautiful slender white bodies drifting dreamily by just under my viewing. Unfortunately, I was not quick enough to take a photo but I did alert some of the photographers who I thought would be interested. A rude response put an end to my helpfulness. "She hasn't a clue. There are no Beluga whales here" I heard one say. I shrugged. Well, I should know. We had seen many in Chukotka, Russia....
All in all, the cruise was good. And we did sight some simply magnificent icebergs. But sadly, the touristy nature of the tour together with so many passengers jammed on the one boat was somewhat disappointing.
I think however, we may have been ruined by past adventures....
A TRAGIC SHOPPING TRIP....
I had quite forgotten that we needed something for our evening meal. Alan was in no state to join me on a shopping journey, so I caught a cab from our guest house and headed into Pisiffik supermarket in town.
Not only were we out of food but also wine and beer. Luckily there was still some cooked chicken in the store, but alcohol was another issue. OMG! It was the weekend and by law, there is no alcohol sold in Greenland on a Sunday. My frustration was exacerbated by the liquor department being closed off by a netted fence. I could actually see what I wanted to buy, even touch it. But there was no way I could purchase any....
A local man must have seen my distress. I hoped I hadn't appeared to look too deranged peering through the fence...! Helpfully, he explained that Brugseni supermarket opposite the Pisiffik store, did sell alcohol on a Sunday at the check-out. But you had to ask for it. Oh, and there wasn't much choice, he added.
So, there I was with impossible cleats off, cleats on. And now to cross the road and cleats off again just to buy us some wine. The good news was that the store did sell wine and beer on a Sunday. But it was non-alcoholic.
And it was truly horrible. The chicken was good though....
2025-05-22