Saturday 14 June 2014

A UNESCO World Heritage Site

The Ilulissat Icefjord is also known as Kangia and is certainly one of the most stunning sites that Fram visits. In 2004 it was declared a UNESCO World Heritage site of unique cultural and natural value.
Kangia is a beautiful 60km long fjord, where icebergs from one of the world’s fastest moving glaciers create some really amazing scenery. The beauty of the area is due in part to the enormous production of icebergs from the glacier Sermeq Kujalleq at the head of the ice-fjord and the shallow underwater bank of moraine material at the mouth of the fjord where the large icebergs run aground.
Today when we visited Kangia the fjord was chock-a-block full of ice. The ice ranged in size from small brash ice all the way up to immense icebergs. The weather was perhaps the best we have had on this trip. We experienced clear sunny skies all day long. Having forgotten my sun screen this morning, my red face can attest to how much sunshine we had.
Whether you chose to visit the fjord on foot, by boat, or by air, it was an impressive site. It was even possible to combine all three ways to see the ice. Many people hiked to Sermermiut and Kangia and then also revisited the ice-fjord and the giant icebergs by boat.
Fram was anchored just outside of Ilulissat harbour and was there from 08:30 until 19:00. This gave everyone enough time to not only visit the unique UNESCO World Heritage Site but also time to explore the town. In the evening it was wonderful to cruise through the heavy ice and back into Disko Bay.