Qeqertarsuaq

Now that Greenland is warming up a bit as the summer is about to start, we are venturing farther north along the coast of west Greenland. This morning, Fram anchored off the town of Qeqertarsuaq on Disko Island and from there we took our Polarcirkel boats ashore to explore the area. Through the day some of us we lucky to go on an ice cruise in one of our larger Polarcirkel boats. Conditions were a little cool but calm, which made all the difference.

The name Qeqertarsuaq in Greenlandic means "big island" and refers to the locality and Disko Island itself. If you see "suaq" at the end of any Greenlandic word it means "big". "Qeqertar" means "island". There is a long history of habitation here dating back to the paleo-Eskimo time, 4500 years ago. The modern town was established as a centre for whaling in the 1700s. In colonial times, Godhavn (the Danish name for the place = Good Harbour; we get "haven" from the Scandinavian "havn") was the administrative capital of north Greenland, while Nuuk was the capital of the south. This administrative importance came to an end in 1940, and Nuuk took over as capital of the whole island.

There were several options for our guests to enjoy the day and learn more about this great country of Greenland. Hikes, boat cruises and a tour of the city really gave us a clear overview of Greenlandic life in a small town. We present these images as an illustration of this beautiful day.