I spent ten full days sailing in the Scoresby Sound on my photography expedition to East Greenland. The sound extends from the Greenland Sea, winding its way deep into East Greenland for 110km before it branches off into many smaller fjords.  Thus creating the longest fjord system in the world of approx. 350km. East Greenland is one of the least populated and most remote places on earth. 

Life in East Greenland is very basic. Approximately 80% of Greenland is desolate and uninhabited.  The land is covered with an ice sheet of approx. 1,710,000 sq. km, 2 -3 km thick in parts.   The Inuits live in villages and settlements hugging the coastline. With very few roads, travel around Greenland and between settlements is very difficult, with the only mode of transport being by ship, boat, helicopter, or dog sled.

Getting To East Greenland

There are two ways to get to Greenland from Iceland.  Fly or travel by sea from Reykjavik.  Likewise, I started my expedition from Reykjavík port on MS Freya, a Swedish ship. 

What was supposed to be a 2-day crossing took over three horrendous days.  Once in the Denmark Sea, we encountered a terrible and unforecast 50-knot storm. The MS Freya could only travel at 2-3 knots/hr. Suffice it to say that most of us were seasick and were glad to see Ittoqqoormiit at the beginning of Scoresby Sound. 

The People of East Greenland

We went ashore by zodiac to the Ittoqqoormiit settlement, pop. 400. A very small settlement with brightly coloured houses and a backdrop of snow-covered mountains. The settlement was quiet; we only saw two adults, a store owner, a man feeding his sled dogs, and a couple of muskox in the distance.  A few very friendly children were running around and happy to have their photo taken. Ittoqqoomiit is on the edge of the largest national park in the world.  Northeast Greenland National Park covers 930,000 sq. km.

People in this village hunt whales, polar bears, narwhals, arctic foxes, seals and fish to sustain their lives. The remainder of their food supplies are shipped in during the warmer months of July –August, as the settlement is inaccessible during the rest of the year due to snow. The climate in this Arctic region is very harsh. Winter temperatures can be as low as -22c.

Far From The Madding Crowd

Sailing for ten days and sailing through the fjords of remote East Greenland was an incredible experience.  No tourists, phones, or internet made the whole experience more enjoyable. Viewing and photographing from the ship or the zodiac, experiencing beautiful deep fjords, pristine waters, huge icebergs, steep and rugged coastline, and high snow-topped mountains.  Some of the icebergs were up to 30 metres high. Only 10% of an iceberg is above water, and 90% is below. 

Weather permitting, we were able to go in zodiacs around the icebergs, at all times, keeping a safe distance in the event of one of them calving off a large piece of ice, which could cause huge waves and capsize our zodiac.

Dwindling Glaciers

The saddest part of my visit to East Greenland was witnessing and photographing the effects of climate change.  Likewise, many of the glaciers I saw have either disappeared or are shrinking, leaving remnants of the original glacier due to global temperatures.  

Arctic ocean temperatures and warmer winds have increased over many years by 1c.  Consequently, the ice sheet and glacial melting contribute to global sea level rising of around 0.75mm per year.  

This is a must-see place for anyone who loves landscape photography, glaciers, such as huge expanses of untouched wilderness, and off-the-grid experience. Even though it was mid-summer, temperatures ranged from 0c – 5c.  At times, the wind chill factor made it much colder.  Layers of warm clothing, a warm hat, gloves, and a thick overcoat are necessary.