GREENLAND FJORDS TREK
THE ITINERARY
Your 9-day journey takes you far into some of the most pristine and isolated terrain on the southeast coast of Greenland. On this one-of-a-kind wilderness expedition, you trek 4 to 9 miles a day over rugged terrain where there are no trails or paths, just the wildest, most beautiful landscape you can imagine. Rich with Innuit and Viking history, your journey through the fjords of Greenland starts and ends in the quaint village of Kulusuk, home to 250 Innuit people.
On your trek, you cover a large variety of terrain - river crossings, sandy beaches, boulder fields, miles of rocky shoreline and hillsides covered in vegetation and rock slabs. The route is challenging and exhilarating with a tranquility that exudes from the lazy meandering of the ice flows. It's both awe inspiring and life changing.
TREK STATES
- Trekking Distance: 47 miles or 76 km
- Duration of Trek: 9 Days
- Daily trekking time: 3 to 7 hours
- Trek Season: Summer (August)
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"In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous." ~ Aristotle
DAILY ITINERARY
Icelandic layover then Kulusuk Greenland
Getting to Greenland means you must overnight in Reykjavik, Iceland. We suggest you spend a couple of nights here, as it's a fun city to explore. You then take a spectacular flight over the icebergs of the Denmark Strait to Kulusuk, southeast Greenland. The expansive views of Greenland’s coast and the pack ice are spectacular.Your guides meet you at the small airport, a 30-minute walk to your lodge in the heart of Kulusuk. In the afternoon your guides do a gear check with you to prepare for the start of our trek tomorrow. If the weather is good, we hike up one of the small hills in the village to watch the sun set over the mountains.
Meals Included: Dinner
Lodging: Nanoq Lodge
4.9-mi/8-km • 3-4 hours
After breakfast we load our gear onto the boats for the journey north up Ammassalik Fjord. The fjord often carries icebergs which drift down the coast. It’s also a great place for whale spotting. The boat ride is about 1.5 hours to the edge of the Schweizerland mountains, a vast range of alpine peaks and huge glacier systems.From our drop-off point, you head south down the fjord following an intermittent path, with a few stream crossings, to our first camp of the trip – a great introduction to trekking in Greenland.
Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Lodging: Camp at Tasilaq Fjord
8.7-mi/14-km • 6-7 hours
We climb gently into a lush valley that links Ammassalik Fjord and the bay of Tuno. You traverse a huge variety of terrain, from rocky moraines to thickets of dwarf willow and crowberry bushes, with a few stream crossings along the way to our campsite at the Bay of Tuno.The bay is shallow and calm, and the early mornings here can be stunning, with the mirror-like surface of the water reflecting the silhouette of the mountains on the far side.
Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Lodging: Camp at Kuummiut Tuno
8-mi/13-km • 6-7 hours
After breakfast, we strike camp and load up the boat. Our route today takes you across a wide, sandy delta formed by the outflow from the major glacier systems high above. After a number of stream crossings you get back onto dry land, and tackle a succession of small ascents and descents, following the coastline.We end the day in Ikateq, on the lookout for ripe blueberries on the bushes that grow here on the south facing slopes.
Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Lodging: Camp at Ikateq
8.7-mi/14-km • 6-7 hours
You start the morning crossing a stream that is often teeming with Arctic char. Once across, you continue north-east, just above the level of the fjord for a few miles. We climb up the hillside a short way before descending and following easier terrain to reach our campsite in a small bay, looking south toward the Denmark Strait, between Greenland and Iceland.Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Lodging: Camp at Nunartivaq
5.6-mi/9-km • 6-7 hours
The valley above the camp is strewn with huge boulders, once part of the impressive peaks standing above us. You follow the stream uphill to make a steep climb of a few hundred yards to a col. From here, the views to the north open up, giving you your first glimpse of the huge calving glacier. Now we traverse, with a series of climbs and descents taking you past a small waterfall to a rocky ridge. Here the view is spectacular as you gaze out over countless glaciers and towering alpine spires. Hiking downhill, past some small, tranquil lakes, you arrive at sea level and our shore-side campsite.Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Lodging: Camp at Karale
6.2-mi/10-km • 4-5 hours
Today we leave camp set up and hike along the coastline past several big glaciers. This is a great chance to relax, take our time and enjoy the tranquillity of a singular place and the magical solitude. As you hike, you hear the constant rumble of the glaciers pushing toward the ocean. We climb a low peak, which gives views into the Schweizerland Alps, a system of major glaciers and massive alpine peaks.Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Lodging: Camp at Karale
4.8-mi/8-km • 4-5 hours
After breaking camp, the team travels by boat across the fjord toward the Knud Rasmussen Glacier. We spend the day hiking along the shoreline beneath, toward the calving face of the glacier - a 100-ft. high, 2-mile-wide wall of ice. We’re able to walk within a half mile of the face, where the scale of the ice is truly awe-inspiring. You then hop aboard the boats for the 2-hour trip back to Kulusuk.Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Lodging: Nanoq Lodge
Back home via Iceland
In the morning before the flight out you have a last chance to explore the village and visit the little museum in Kulusuk. Run by a local family, there are some fascinating samples of traditional clothing and hunting equipment. It’s open by appointment, and the family who runs it also teach full time in the village school, so visits have to fit around their schedule.Fly from Kulusuk to Reykjavik, Iceland, and home.
Meals Included: Breakfast
GREENLAND FJORDS TREK DATES AND PRICES
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Question? Ask Us Anything • +1.775.833.9700 • 1.800.231.1919
“Wherever there were glaciers, the world was in a constant state of creation.” ~ John Muir
YOUR GREENLAND GUIDE
Rich Manterfield is your key to adventure. He wears many hats; leader, teacher, interpreter and guide, and hails from Sheffield, England. Rich has been guiding wilderness treks and dog sled expeditions across Greenland for the past 6 years, and is a qualified UIMLA International Mountain Leader. Depending on the size of the group, Rich will be accompanied by an assistant guide. He shows you where to catch trout, pick wild blueberries and dig for clams to augment great dinners. He also opens an incredible window into one of the most beautiful places on earth.
CREW ON THE TREK
In addition to your trek guide you have a support crew who are always working behind the scenes – at the lodge in Kulusuk and driving the boats. Unlike our other treks, they aren't hiking with you. Each day on the fjords they pick up your camping gear and transport it to your next camp location, where it is waiting for you.
The other half of the crew is you. When we arrive at our campsite for the day, everyone pitches in setting up camp and taking it down the next day. We also pitch in with meal prep and on Polar Bear watch.
WHAT'S INCLUDED
- Services of a professional UIMLA International Mountain Guide
- Lodging as per daily itinerary
- Dedicated boat crew
- Airport transfers in Greenland
- Boat transfers and support
- All meals during the trek
- Full camp, tent lodging and adventure kitchen
- Polar bear deterrents
- Sat phone and PLB