In the last few years, one of our most popular customised trips has been a combination of sea kayaking, trekking and mountaineering, so this year we’ve decided to add one to our programme. A favourite of our guides, the trip involves loading the boats up with everything needed and leaving Kulusuk village behind to follow the tides and ice conditions into the wild inner fjords, passing tide-water glaciers and towering icebergs and making camp at some stunning shore-side spots each night. From water level, we get a unique perspective on the area, from whales surfacing around us to seals watching us on our way. Perhaps the perfect way to travel in this region, we’ll be using the kayaks to access some awesome valley systems and mountains that beg to be explored. A magic trip!

Objective
The beauty of this trip is that we have no set itinerary to follow. It allows us to move intuitively with the prevailing conditions, whether that be an in-flowing tide, an ice-choked fjord or simply towards that beautiful peak that has caught our attention. We’ll regularly land to make ascents of some of the many stunning mountains that crowd the area, or pack the rucksacks for a multi-day trek inland (think un-tracked wilderness, delicate arctic flora, views to the Inland Ice and the very occasional hunter’s hut). Completely self-contained, at the end of the trip we’ll simply paddle back to the village.

Experience Required
Our aim is for the trip to be as inclusive as possible – we don’t require that you need extensive experience of kayaking or mountaineering, but some previous paddling is certainly helpful. Above all, team members should bring a sense of adventure along – we’ll be going far off the beaten track and will to be self-reliant/sufficient the whole time out. The combination of paddling on the water and then exploring whilst ashore makes for a very active trip.

Weather & Light Conditions
In August, daylight hours are long, punctuated by sunsets that roll into sunrises and last for hours. The temperature tends to be moderate, but do expect some frosts at night. We often experience long periods of perfect high pressure that mean clear skies but the team should also be well-prepared for rain.

Fauna & Flora
Kulusuk, the village from which we will start and then finish the trip, is located on one of the outer-most islands in the area.  As we travel further north & inland up the fjords, the shoreline becomes much greener. The inner valleys that we'll explore on foot are well vegetated and coloured by many blooming flowers.  

   

Itinerary

Please note that this is an example itinerary, and is dependent upon team ability and local ice conditions.

Day 1  
Arrive in Keflavik International Airport, Iceland.  Transfer to Reykjavik.  Overnight in guesthouse.

Day 2  
Fly Reykjavik to Kulusuk, East Greenland.  A short transfer from accommodation to the airport.  Flight by bi-prop Fokker 50 or Dash over the Denmark Strait.  Impressive views of the pack ice, 'bergs and mountains of East Greenland.  Land on the gravel strip at Kulusuk.  Meet expedition guide.  Walk to Kulusuk village.  Equipment check & safety briefing.

Day 3
Early morning start towards Apusiajiik Island and the first of many tide-water glacier faces.  First camp with views of the western horizon (at this time of year, the sun only dips below the Icecap for a short while, making for 6 hour sunsets and rises).

Day 4
Follow the shores of Apusiajiik north, skirting the open waters of Angmagssalik/Ammassalik fjord, before crossing 3 fjords to reach Eqi - a camp amongst Inuit tent circles, from which we've watched fin whales cruising up and down the sound a stone's throw from the shore.


Day 5
A start dictated by the tide; northwestwards into the sheltered Torssukatak fjord, passing the Inuit village of Kungmiut/Kummiut.  The key to the day is in reaching the head of the fjord at high tide, when a narrow channel is flooded, allowing access to the wide, shallow bay of Tuno.  The bay's shallow because of the alluvial outwash from an unnamed glacier that lies a little inland.  Following the braided char streams north, an hour's walk leads through the morraines to the terminus of the glacier amidst incredible mountain scenery.

Day 6
Out of Tuno into Ikateq fjord.  Past a spectacular rock spire and the remains of a WWII US airstrip (complete with several thousand rusty barrels).  Into Sermiligaq fjord, we follow the coast northwards and inland.  In Sermiligap qingertiva, the Knud Rasmussen and Karale glaciers, together with a handful of smaller ice flows reach sea level in ice faces many kilometres long.  Camp by the calving face with the boats high-and-dry, to the gun-shot reports of the glacier producing icebergs.

Day 7
Follow the ice faces at a respectful distances back towards the open sea.  Cross the fjord (paying particular attention that we don't damage the boats on the sharp, freshly carved ice) and follow the eastern shore of Sermiligaq to make camp a little to the north of the remotest of the area's tiny villages, Sermiligaq, where we can perhaps make a visit in the evening.

Day 8
In the mouth of Sermiligaq fjord, 2 islands refer back to the first Europeans, the Norse or Vikings, that visited these shores.  Leif's and Erik the Red's Islands rise steeply out of the water and will be our target for the day.

Day 9
Depending on how everyone feels, we may take the day to explore these mysterious islands, searching for the obelisks that are marked on the map.  An ascent of one of the peaks will pay us with views of the fjord that we will attempt to cross each day - we can check ice conditions and watch tidal movements.

Day 10
A crossing of Sermiligaq fjord.  We need good conditions and will hop between the islands that span the fjord mouth.  From this day onwards, we will be traversing the shores exposed to the ocean.

Day 11
Southwards through the complex of tiny islands that make up the western fringe of Sermiligaq fjord.  There are 2 small hunting cabins that we may overnight in.

Day 12
Enter the enclosed basin of Aqerta-tuluk and round the southern-most tip of Apusiajiik island, Kongartik, by way of a  narrow channel that is protected from the ocean swell by a series of skerries.  Camp in sight of Kulusuk island.

Day 13
Through the grounded icebergs of Ikasartik until the village is in sight.  Return to the village.  Showers, a farewell meal together and a good night's sleep!

Day 14
Transfer through to the airstrip and leave East Greenland behind.  1.5 hours later, re-entry into a very different world in Reykjavik, Iceland.  Overnight in a guesthouse.

Day 15
Transfer through to Keflavik Airport.  End of expedition.