The morning was packed with interesting lectures again. After some occasional ice floes that we passed
during breakfast, the ice became denser and we passed several ice belts in the
approach on Danmarkshavn, our afternoon landing location. Guests standing in
the fresh breeze out on deck with their binoculars were rewarded with some
sightings of seals resting on the ice flows (actually, you could have almost
the same view comfortably sitting in a chair next to a window in the MV FRAM
Observation Lounge, with a mug of hot chocolate next to you…).
And, as the first cruise ship within the last four years, we
managed to get into Danmarkshavn on the Northern side of Dove Bugt! The station
personnel were really happy to see some new faces! Six persons are currently
living there, running a meteorological service. A little to the side of the
main station, we visited Danmarks Minde, also called Villa Danmark, the hut
built in 1906 by the Danmark Expedition. Some guests also enjoyed a stroll over
the tundra towards a small rocky outcrop with a great view over the bay and the
station.
The woolly seeds of the Arctic willow formed small silver
cushions on the tundra, indicating that the summer was definitively over in
Greenland. Instead, winter is approaching fast, and the mountain tops were
already covered by a thin layer of powder snow. We also saw plenty of animals:
snow hares were feeding willow leaves, building up their winter reserves. Two
Polar foxes were not shy at all and some of us managed to get some great
close-up shots. And finally, a gyrfalcon was using the radio masts of the
station as look-out point, overviewing the unusual outburst of activity at Danmarkshavn.
