The south Greenland fiords

We woke today to strange noises in the middle of the night. Normally, except for the noise of the fan in your room, or the gentle hum of the ship, you notice so particular sounds on the Fram in the middle of the night. This night was different as at about 0400h the bow thrusters started up. This could only mean two things- either we were coming into port or we were changing course to avoid ice. It was the latter. The promised ice that we had hears about of southern Greenland was around the ship.  The Captain and Chief Officer skilfully navigated Fram into the ice belt that lay outside Qaqortoq and surrounding area- out destination for our first day in Greenland.

A very unusual sighting for Greenland was a large group of Greenland or Harp Seals on ice floes. There were adults and younger animals (with spots) in the group. Greenland Seal adults have a black face and dark saddle on the back in the shape of a Harp- hence the North American name for the species.

It was very satisfying to see land- Greenland- after spending two days at sea from Iceland.

We made it through the ice belt and then entered Julianehåbsfjord on our way to the ruins at Hvalsø. On the way we passed Qaqortoq, which used to be known as Julianehåb. All Greenland towns had Danish names from the colonial times. Since Greenland got its homerule in 1979 Greenlandic names have to be used as Greenlandic is the official language.

At Hvalsøy (Whale's Island), we were thrilled to see the ruins of an ancient Norse church dating from the early 13th century. From the ruins in Hvalsøy we know about the last confirmed episodes out of the Viking time before the Norse colonies disappeared. Today the ruins are an UNESCO World Heritage site.

The afternoon we spent in Qaqortoq the capital of the southern fjords, the so-called sheep country. Here we got different possibilities to learn about Greenland's fabulous Southern fjords. The town looked typically (for Greenland) beautiful with the colourful houses perched all the way up the hill.

One group went on a hike behind the city along a large lake. Spring is so late in south Greenland that the lake was still frozen. Still, the Arctic vegetation was coming to life in the long days that we now have in the late Arctic spring. Several bird species were seen along the path including the Lapland Bunting.

The second group got lots of information about Qaqortoq, its inhabitants and their way of life on a guided tour through the city. Most were especially impressed by the art cut in stone of Greenland's famous artist Aka Hoegh.

The third ground went for a very typical "Kaffeemik". They were invited to a private house for a Greenlandic buffet with nearly everything Greenland's kitchen can offer; seal and lamb meat, salmon and halibut in different variations, fish cake and caviare, shrimps and capelin fish. As a dessert there have been several different cakes with Arctic berries, liqueur made of berries from the tundra just next to the town and Angelica schnaps, to feel better after all this fabulous food. Food is always a part of the culture, now we have the feeling we got a good first impression of Greenlandic culture.

The Denmark Strait and Cape Farewell

Over the last two days we have sailed southwest across the Denmark Strait, from Iceland to the most southerly tip of Greenland, Cape Farewell. The strait is known for its rough water but on our crossing, she was very tame. Some of us experienced in this part of the world say it was the calmest they have seen it!

We were lucky to see two Humpback whales on our way yesterday and today we had a large pod of Long-finned Pilot Whales run along side the Fram.

The morning sunrise was spectacular!

We used the two days at sea to present many lectures to our guests on a variety of subjects pertaining to Greenland. The idea of this was simple- the more you know about a place, the more you get out of your visit.

Along the way, we were accompanied by a few seabirds including Northern Fulmars and this lovely, immature Iceland Gull. One of us also caught a glimse of a flock of small, all-white gulls which we think were Ivory Gulls. Although not from this trip, your faithful bloggers wanted to let you know what an Ivory Gull looks like. Spring is very late year in Greenland and there is lots of ice around. This is perhaps why the Ivory Gulls were there.

An immature Iceland Gull

Ivory Gull

Even though this last sea-day was a bit grey and foggy, our excitement built up as we approached the southern tip of Greenland. And our first ice, though only bergy-bits, were nevertheless a thrill to see! We expect to see A LOT more ice in the coming days!

Grundarfjordur and the Snaefellsnes Peninsula

Our trip, which started yesterday in Reykjavik, Iceland, continued in this country today as we stopped in Grundarfjordur for the morning. Most of our tour will be in West Greenland but yesterday and today has given us an hors d'ouvre of this great country of Iceland.

Fishing is the biggest industry in Iceland and Grundarfjordur is one of Iceland's most important fishing communities- the biggest one in the west.

As the fishing industry grew there, the harbour was enlarged and as a result Fram (and other cruise ships) can go along side the pier. Grundarfjordur is on the north coast of the Snæfellsnes Peninsula, with Breithafjordur and its 3000 islands to the north. The main backdrop to the town is the imposing mountain called Kirkjufell, which is 463 m high and stands on its own little peninsula. The mountain is likely the most photographed in Iceland!

Normally it looks quit green at this time of the year. But this year the winter does not want to go and looked still greyish and brown.

The Snæfellsnes Peninsula is also known as little Iceland as you can find in this region nearly all special landscapes Iceland can offer to you. Many of our guests went on a bus tour to enjoy the amazing landscape and nature. Volcanism combined with nice bird cliffs, sheep and Iceland horses, even a giant stone troll- what more do you need to be happy?

Other guests joined expedition staff on a beautiful hike up to impressive waterfalls behind the town. The altitude of over 200 metres afforded tremendous views of the surrounding area. We will let a few pictures tell the story.

So now we are on our way across the Denmark Strait to Greenland! This water can be very rough but tonight we have relatively calm seas and bright sunshine. We all hope this bodes well for our future days on the largest island in the world.

The start of a new adventure

Today we said goodbye to our "Iceland" guests and said hello to our "Greenland" guests. In actual fact our new guest will be a bit of a hybrid because we are planning to spend a couple of days in Iceland before we head for west Greenland. So we  are in Iceland's capital of Reykjavik, a sophisticated, modern city. Yesterday we had fine weather nearby in the Westmann Islands, but today we woke to very strong winds and cold temperatures. Iceland can be cruel!

Did you know that Reykjavik is one of the northernmost capitals of any country in the world? Did you know that about half the population of Iceland (over 300,000 people) live in greater Reykjavik? The city is clean and bright with a bit of a bohemian feel. Restaurants and coffee-shops abound. Tourism is very big in Iceland these days (second only to the fishing industry in national earnings), and Reykjavik is the jumping-off place for most travellers in the country, whether they are travelling by air or by sea, like us!

An outstanding landmark in the city is Hallgrimskirkja, which is the largest church (Lutheran) in the country. Its design was commissioned in 1937 but it seems much more modern than this. The architect took as inspiration the basaltic columns you see in many parts of Iceland. In front of the church you see an imposing bronze of the famous Leifur Eriksson who sailed to Greenland and on to Vinland, modern day Newfoundland, where he founded a settlement now called L'Anse aux Meadows.

Of course once our guests boarded the ship, there were several "must-do" activities including check-in, blue jacket pickup, the safety drill and the Captains welcome reception. Those who have been on Fram before are very familiar with all this! It was fortuitous that as we had two bronze fishermen standing on the wharf and pointing to the boarding point for our ship!

Here are our blue jackets waiting patiently for new owners!

Our Captain welcomes all on board. The officers and staff are presented.

The light was reflecting beautifully from the windows of the brand new concert hall finished in around 2009. They are crazy about puffins in Iceland! We are too! As sailed out of Reykjavik harbour, the light and clouds over the nearby mountains were magnificent.

Our last day in this great place

Oh, what a day! We woke to brilliant blue skies and warm air. The latter reminded us that we were on the south coast of Iceland which is influenced by the North Atlantic Drift- a current of warm water originating off Florida as the Gulf Stream. It is what keeps northern Europe and Iceland MUCH warmer that they should be if you just look at latitude.

So today we were headed for the iconic Westmann Islands. They got their name from the fact that when the Norse came west to Iceland, they would stop off in Ireland to take slaves on their way. The "west men" were the slaves from Ireland.

Our first close look at the Westmann Islands was of Surtsey (Island of Surt). Your faithfully blogger is old enough to remember the big news of the birth of Surtsey in 1963. From the North Atlantic rose explosive columns of smoke and ash and together with the molten lava, grew quite quickly into the island we see today. Since then (only a little over 50 years ago- a geological blink of the eye) the island has been eroded somewhat by the sea and is somewhat smaller than it used to be. Perhaps it may end up as a pinnacle of hard rock sticking out of the ocean (as we saw around the islands). Remarkably Surtsey looks like it's been there for millions of years!

From Surtsey, we had great views of the mainland and the Eyjafjallajokull glacier. The volcano associated with the glacier erupted a few years ago and caused a major disruption in trans-Atlantic air traffic because of the ash put up into the air and atmosphere. Here it is to the right in this image.

As we arrived to Surtsey, we were very lucky to see a pod of Orcas (Killer Whales). Close to the Orcas was a Humpback Whale and we were pretty sure that the Orcas were hunting the whale.

After Surtsey we cruised to Home Island- Haemaey- the largest in the Westmann Island archipelago, and the most populated. We had several opportunities to see the island via bus, walking or from a small cruise boat. A strong theme on Haemaey is the eruption that occurred in 1973. This destroyed 300 houses in the town, dumped millions of tonnes of ash over the rest of the town. Houses were buried half way up the walls and the town grave yard was inundated. However, you would never know the ash had been there!

On the walking tour we climbed up the volcano that was created in the 1973 eruption (see the red mountain in this image). It was thrilling to stand on new land, only a few decades old!

In the eruption museum, one of the houses that was buried in ash has been excavated. The museum was brand new, beautifully designed and very sophisticated.

There is a tradition in the Westmann Islands for hunting puffins using a net called a fleygur as dipicted here on the side of a building.

As this is the last day of our Iceland circumnavigation, here is a commemorative image of our great Expedition Team! Hi everyone!!!

Djupivogur, all day!

We countinued our clockwise circumnavigation of Iceland with a visit to the southeast Iceland town of Djupivogur today. We had all day in the community to explore and get to know Iceland even better. This tour so far has really given us an opportunity for total immersion in everything Icelandic.

Guests had an opportunity to stroll around town, have a coffee and just relax. Djupivogur is part of the 'slow city' movement and so was very conducive to this. One of the most famous highlights of the town can be found around the bay in another harbour where 34 granite egg sculptures of some of Iceland's birds can be found. They were created by Sigurdur Gudmundsson and installed in 2009. It is a truly impressive display. The eggs are large, colourful, and very smooth, very tactile! One has to wonder how on earth the artist made these perfect eggs out of such a hard rock as granite.

The two excursions guests took advantage of both had a theme of glaciers with Djupivogur being not so far from Europe's largest glacier called Vatnajokull. It was a fairly long but scenic bus ride to the glacier lagoon. Let these images tell the story!

Out of town, just a 15 minute walk, could be found some ponds and hides (blinds) for birdwatching. The area was rich with wildlife, and some of us ventured there to breathe the fresh air, listen to the soft quietness of the place and appreciate the Arctic fauna of the area.