Arctic Journey: Qilakitsoq and Baffin Bay

Wednesday, July 31st. Sunrise: already up. Sunset: never went down. So stated the daily program. We had crossed 70ºN, heading for the archaeological site of Qilakitsoq, famous for the 1972 discovery of the Greenland mummies. It sits on the Nuussuaq Peninsula, the south shore of Uummannaq Fjord.

Soon after the the dining room opened for breakfast the bridge spotted a group of four fin whales.

The camera and binocular brigades were soon out on the bow, the bridge, or the deck atop the bridge.

This was the best photo I took.

The daily program described Qilakitsoq as a wet landing (stepping into water), but after a reconnaissance by zodiac the dry lander was pressed into service. (This photo was taken later while departing).

Joan and I attached ourselves to the small group to be led by Ian Bullock.

This spot was a small cove with grasses and brushy greenery, backed by tall stone walls.

Those who didn't wish to challenge the terrain were treated to zodiac rides.

Hidden in the brush were flowers, including this large-flowered wintergreen.

Ian spotted an arctic fox den and described its contents, including the remains of seabirds.

This location must have offered good hunting, for there were the remains of Inuit winter houses. Also, some of the plants offered a source of vitamin C.

There were several graves, built from piled stones.

Skulls and large bones were easily visible.

While we were exploring this lower ground, other groups were coming and going to the site where the Greenland mummies were discovered, up among the cliffs.

As you can see in the above photo, the climb up is along open, easily traversed stretches of rock, requiring only footgear with good gripping soles. Once you reach the top there is more clambering amongst rocks to reach the actual gravesite.

After one or two final squeezes between boulders, followed by a rock hop, the gravesite where the mummies were discovered is reached. Vincent "Vinnie" Butler, an Irish archaeologist, had joined the Explorer in Kangerlussuaq, and was on hand to assist and explain. He's the one in the red cap.

This is a good view of one of the graves. The gloved figure in the corner is Vinnie.

There were other gravesites along the route.

It was a life of extremes here: extremely dependent upon the sea, extremely cold, extremely unforgiving of weakness, sickness, or accident. But human beings can be extremely tough, too.

We returned to the warmth of the Explorer for lunch, after which we were to visit the town of Uummannaq on Uummannaq Island, a very short sail away in Uummannaq Fjord. We did get close ...

but the wind had been picking up all morning, and the floating docks on the island were heaving; the zodiac ride would have been very rough. We watched through binoculars as we sailed on by.

While prowling among the bulletin boards on the ship I took this photo of a list of terms in Greenlandic (click to enlarge).

That evening at dinner my susceptibility to seasickness began to kick in. At first everything was OK, but the dining room is towards the bow and pitches more than midships. By the end of the meal I was feeling unsettled and decided to skip dessert (a Manjari chocolate torte, sigh!) to return to the cabin, take a seasickness pill, and lie down. By morning everything was better ... both me and the ocean.

August 1st was spent entirely at sea, traversing Baffin Bay headed towards Baffin Island in arctic Canada. We were traveling a bit north of west, so the sun continued to be up twenty-four hours a day. Joan and I spent a lot of time visiting the bridge, of course, but there were also a host of lectures:

• Plate Tectonics and the Geology of Greenland and Baffin Island
• Exploration of Extreme Underwater Environments (Captain Fred McLaren)
• Arctic Wildlife: From Midge to Muskox
• Arctic Landings Briefing
• Aboriginal Arctic People: The Amazing Inuit
• The Polar Explorer: How Melting Sea Ice in the Polar Regions Will Affect Us All

By the time dinner was finished, we were sailing along the coast of Baffin Island, heading towards its northwestern tip.

Tomorrow we would visit Pond Inlet, but for now, we admired the view.