Why Southern Greenland?

     Folks know Greenland for its ice cap.  We’ve all had the fact that Iceland is green and Greenland is icy drilled into us by now.  But what makes southern Greenland stand out is the dramatic collection of mountains peeking (or peaking) out from under that giant ice cap.  Imagine every granitic mountain range you know - the Sierras, the Beartooths, the Sawtooths, the Wind Rivers - all got stacked up on top of each other, or squished together so they were side by side.   You’ll spend hours on the deck of the ship, watching dramatic mountain after dramatic mountain rise out of the fjord, reaching prodigious heights.  And on the Ultramarine, at least, you’ll be able to fly over and into some of these mountains for a high-altitude landing.

     Of course, the ice cap is a highlight as well.  The Greenland ice sheet is the second largest in the world, and in southern Greenland you’ll see it tumbling from behind those giant granitic mountains, down into the fjords and channels that your ship will be navigating every day.  And again, on the Ultramarine, you’ll have the chance to see the ice sheet from a helicopter, and potentially even land on the surface itself.

     Folks also think of icebergs when they think of Greenland.  While most of the icebergs seen in southern Greenland will be coming from further north - mostly along the eastern and northeastern coasts - the sheer size and volume of them will be overwhelming.  As you move from one fjord to another, out and around some of the rocky points of the southern coast, you’ll be joining the parade of small, medium and oh-my-god-that’s-ginormous icebergs as they come down the east coast with the East Greenland Current.  More opportunities here for gawking and photography.

     Finally, southern Greenland is home to quite a few Inuit villages.  Ships like the Ultramarine will make zodiac landings at one or more of these villages, and will have spent several weeks or months organizing cultural exchanges with the locals.  On the day of our arrival at Appilatoq, the Ultramarine had already arranged for a choir performance at the church, a rock concert at the local school, a chance to taste local foods, a presentation by local subsistence hunters, and a soccer game with the children!