Blogs from South Greenland, Greenland, North America

Het is nog geen jaar geleden dat Facebook mij de suggestie deed om lid te worden van de ‘Arctic Circle Trail-groep’. Mijn interesse was gewekt en ik kwam erachter dat deze trail zich in Groenland bevindt. Oké, bij Groenland denk ik aan dure georganiseerde reizen, maar je kunt er dus ook prima op eigen houtje naar toe. Als je van lopen houdt en het geen probleem vindt om in het wild te kamperen, hoeft zo’n reis niet eens zo heel veel meer te kosten dan je vliegticket en een enkele overnachting met bed en douche in de bewoonde wereld. Wel handig om voor het westen en zuiden van Groenland te kiezen, tenzij je graag op het menu van de ijsbeer wilt staan. Zo vertrok ik dus richting het sfeerloze, lelijke Kangerlussuaq, dat aan het begin van ... read more

Our second port of call in Greenland was Qaqortoq. It is a town of about 3,000 on the Julianehåbsfjord (Juliana Fijord). Formerly known as Julianehåb, it was founded by the Danes in 1774 as an outpost for the sealskin trade and is now the fifth largest town in Greenland. Qaqortoq is a town of blue and red buildings dotting a rocky landscape. The only access to Qaqortoq is by sea or helicopter. The are no cross-country roads in Greenland and Qaqortoq has a heliport, but no airport. As we were arriving, an Air Greenland helicopter took off. The port could not accommodate a ship the size of Caribbean Princess, so we tendered from the ship to the ferry dock. (The lifeboats were used as tenders.) Qaqortoq is small enough to be walkable. A visitor information centre ... read more

August 27, 2019 – Qaqortoq, Greenland– Weather: 39°F/3°C @ 7:00 am, 48°F/9°C 2 noon, partly cloudy, wind 5.8 mph, humidity 55° Today’s port of call is Qaqortoq, Greenland situated on an island along Greenland’s southern coast. Originally, we were to have stopped here on the outward journey back on August 7thbut the itinerary changed and the stop was moved twenty days on to today. The name Qaqortoq, which means “white”, aptly describes the landscape that is dotted with outcroppings of white granite. Originally settled by the Vikings the current settlement was founded by Danish and Norwegian colonists in 1775. Today approximately 3,000 inhabitants call Qaqortoq home. Situated along the shores of a natural harbour the town stretches up from the shore and into the surrounding mountains. Colorful houses and other buildings hug the ru... read more

Today we had a pleasant day in Qaqortog. We had a leisurely morning and met at 10 a.m. Jan took us to the tannery where we had a tour. I have difficulty with this because it is a tannery for seal skins. I understand the subsistence aspect of it and that Inuit have been making sealskin clothing for eons, but I don’t like the fashion part of it. I remember years ago Greenpeace would try to block people from clubbing the young harbor seals. There was so much protest the sales of sealskin products decreased. This tannery sells their products to Greenland, Iceland, and Europe only. The sealskins are brought here (the only tannery in Greenland) by the hunters, and are processed here, taking 3-4 weeks before they are ready for sewing. The skins can come ... read more

Today 4 of us took a 10 mile hike to see Qooroq glacier. Sheila and John dii not go (John did hike a short distance with us and then turned around) because Sheila’s knee is hurting a lot. In the beginning we were hiking on the road, which is quite rocky, and I walked on the grass next to the road. My toe got stuck in a lump of grass and I pancaked face first in the grass. I wasn’t hurt, just embarrassed. This was Fall #1. Angela, Rick, Jan, and I continued on the road up to several small lakes, then climbed up to a ridge. The fohn winds had arrived during the night and were blowing about 35 miles per hour. Jan told us it would get worse. We arrived at the viewpoint where ... read more