More Arctic Cruise

Once again, I'd like to express  my thanks to both Eagle-Eye Tours and Adventure Canada, for allowing me this opportunity! Without it, my participation in this incredible adventure would most likely have remained a dusty item on my bucket list!

One of the highlights of the trip, for me, was seeing an ice berg break up from a zodiac in Disko Bay. Happily, my camera happened to be pointed in the right direction and ready to go. Here's the result (this is an animated gif file - click on the image and then wait for it to load, the animation should start automatically):

A fun aspect of the trip was the soccer match between the AC team, and the residents of Itilleq. The match apparently takes place every time the Clipper Adventurer visits the village, which is at least a few times each summer. Although the AC team put in a spirited effort, they were bested by Itilleq's professional squad whose record was extended to 20 and 1.

Also while the ship was anchored at Itilleq, several brave and hardy souls, of both the AC resource team and the compliment of passengers, leapt into the icy water to experience a true Polar Bear Swim! Most jumped in from the boarding hatch, but a few leapt about 25 metres from the bridge wing!

And that's a wrap! I will be loading all the images from the cruise to my onto website (tanyadeleeuw.smugmug.com) over the next few days, where many more images than were posted in this blog series will be available for viewing. I'll be happy to share small web-ready images with my fellow passengers and the resource team/crew upon request - please email me (tanyadeleeuw65@gmail.com) the image number. Prints and products can be ordered directly from the site.

Last Stop: Kangerlussuaq

A lovely morning steam into the Kangerlussuaq fjord - not a fjord like you might expect to see in Scandinavia, but a fjord nevertheless. What made it special was that it was our first real sunrise (and a beauty it was!) in almost two weeks - and I was up early, around 5am, to catch it with a private viewing from the ship's upper deck!

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Fog, very dense at times, was rising from the water when we arrived in Kanger, which made the zodiac trip to the dockside ... interesting ... we completely lost our bearings at one point, and had to be guided in by radio!

About 500 people live here permanently - there's a school, a hospital, a police station, a rec centre, and a couple of bars. We had a quick bus tour around the town, but there wasn't a chance to get off and take photos except when we stopped at the museum.

During the bus ride from the harbour to the town site, we learned that Kanger used to be a major US "outpost" and refueling station, particularly during WWII. That is, until something (the details of which are still unknown) occurred during the 1990's to cause the US military to withdraw from its base almost overnight - leaving half-eaten meals on tables, beer in the fridge (!), and paperwork on officers' desks! Today, three USAF ski-equipped C130's are stationed here, ostensibly for resupplying research posts on the Greenland Ice Sheet. (I just love the "heavies" but have to admit to being nervous photographing them!) Apparently they perform the same service in Antarctica in the northern winter months.

Nowadays, the long (3km!) runway and isolated location is ideal for aircraft testing by both military forces and private developers.

 

 

 

And so concludes my day-by-day narration of the cruise! There are more photos from the trip to come, though, so stay tuned because I'll get them up eventually!