Join me and my European partner on an amazing photo expedition in our Fjords of Silence – Greenland to East Greenland aboard a schooner sailing vessel.  East Greenland is one of the most isolated areas in Greenland and offers fantastic possibilities for photography.  This is the workshop for the serious landscape and wildlife photo enthusiast who’s wiling to go back in time and explore the Arctic and travel off the beaten track to get amazing imagery.  We will fly to Eastern Greenland from Reykjavik Iceland and board a schooner to sail amongst the icebergs in the largest fjord system in the world. There are limited spots available and the workshop is almost filled, so if you are interested, please reach out to me as soon as possible.

 

 

Scoersbysund fjord is remote and the largest such system on the planet with deep channels and steep mountains bordering the waterway.  This remote area has some of the most dramatic scenery in Greenland and the only way to explore it is on a boat. And, what better boat to have than a sailing schooner designed for arctic exploration.  Quiet and efficient, it will transport us among the leviathan icebergs and allow us access to the shoreline all in search of epic photographs and amazing experiences.

What To Expect

On this workshop, you’ll have the options of photographing icebergs the size of skyscrapers, steep mountains which fall in to the sea, deep fjords, floating icebergs, glaciers, wildlife such as muskoxen, arctic fox, arctic hare and if we are lucky polar bears.  Plus, there is a chance of capturing the Northern Lights.  We have chartered a wooden schooner for the trip and we will sail the calm fjords for 8 days/7 nights.  The boat will be our base camp during the workshop where we will enjoy our meals, sleep and travel to different regions of the fjords.  The boat sails slowly and is especially quiet, which enhances the experience of the silent fjords.  It has comfortable double cabins (shared showers) and has a crew of 4 which will assist us in making the adventure as pleasurable as possible.

Each day will find us in a different part of the fjord system and we will go ashore to photograph and stretch our legs.  Also, if the sky is clear, we will go on land after dark to photograph the dancing Northern Lights.  The steep mountains in the area and deep fjords makes these waters very sheltered and still.  The complete quietness is something we never experience in our busy modern world.  Here, we are completely immersed in the natural world around us!

 

Itinerary

Below is the proposed itinerary.  Of course like all things, we need to remain adaptable and flexible depending on weather and water conditions

Day 1 Arrive in Iceland

Arrival in Iceland and transportation to our hotel in Reykjavik.  Attend group dinner at a local restaurant in Reykjavik and plan for the upcoming adventure.

If you want to arrive early, or stay later, please let us know so that we could arrange additional hotel nights for you

Day 2 Flight to Constable Point Greenland

Depart Iceland for a flight to Constable Point in Greenland, a small airfield on the west side of Hurry Inlet in Jameson Land.  Embark the schooner and get an introduction and safety briefing by the crew.  Begin our sail towards the village of Ittoqqortoormilt where the evening is spent with locals in perhaps the most isolated village in the world

Ittoqqortoormit was founded in the 1920’s by people from Ammassalik island. It is the most northerly settlement on the east coast of Greenland. The 450 inhabitants make their living mostly by subsistence hunting of seals, Narwhal, muskoxen and polar bear. The quaint little houses dot the rocky slopes of south Liverpool Land with magnificent views of Cap Brewster and the Volquart Boons Coast to the south.

Day 3 Sailing Scoresbysound

We sail out early morning and head across the Scoresbysound fjord system to the towering basalt peaks on the south coast of the fjord.  We sail between whole palaces of icebergs that gently drift under the influence of the currents in the arctic waters after calving from the parent glaciers originating in the inland ice.  We will likely anchor in the late evening at Hakla Haven, on Denmark O, the site of an old Inuit settlement and wintering camp of the first scientific expedition to Scoresbysound over a hundred years ago.

Day 4 Fohnfjord and Iceberg City

We sail west through the narrow Fohnfjord with the majestic basalt mountains of Grassland on the port side and 2000 meter high sheer granite cliffs of Milne Land on the starboard side.  At the end of the fjord we will anchor at Red Island and even make landfall here. In the afternoon and evening we will take a zodiac to the magnificent iceberg city where hundreds of huge icebergs are stranded on the ground underwater.

Day 5 Rodefjord and Harefjord

Our journey continues to the north through Rodefjord which is often filled with both larger icebergs and ice crust from ‘bergs that are breaking up.  This is the calmest and most vegetated part of the fjord which may be starting the Fall color transition. Sailing the calm fjord we will see muskoxen roaming the hillsides. Somewhere along the fjord we will take a short hike to photograph the vivid colored vegetation and try our luck with the wildlife. We will arrive in Hereford in the late afternoon where anchors are set. Here we will have a very good chance of photographing the northern lights if the sky is clear.

Day 6 Harefjord

Depending on weather and ice conditions we will stay another night in the Hereford scouting for muskoxen, snow hares, grouse, geese and other wildlife which normally graze on the south facing slopes. We may take a longer hike on land this day and enjoy a lunch ashore as we take in the breathtaking views over Herefjord where the glacier tongue descends in to the sea. For those who prefer less exercise, you can stroll along the shoreline or stay on board enjoying the view. In the evening the crew will make a bonfire and prepare a BBQ dinner on the beach.

Day 7 Ofjord and Bear Island

The sailing continues eastwards through the awesome Ofjord. This is one of the most spectacular parts of the trip! Terrific mountain peaks and granite walls tower 2000 meters up from the sea, as if the Patagonia mountains of Fitzroy and Cerro Torre had been moved to the Arctic. Usually the sea breeze in the Ofjord during the middle of the day allows sails to be set.  You are more than welcome to assist with the rigging!  This day ends by setting anchor at Bear Islands in the afternoon.

Day 8 Bear Island to Constable Point

Sailing the channel between Bear Island and Milne Land with a breathtaking view of the spectacular archipelago. As we sail in to the last evening and night of the trip it is likely that we’ll be experiencing the sights of the largest and the most fascinating icebergs of the journey. This provides a fantastic opportunity for photographs of the majestic and impressive icebergs that are found in this area.  When we wake up the next morning we are anchored at the airstrip in Constable Point.

Day 9 Greenland to Iceland

The last morning we will enjoy a good breakfast together, write in the diary on board the schooner and share contact information with each other.  We will disembark the schooner for the last time and board the aircraft in Constable Point and fly back to the Keflavik airport in Iceland where the workshop will conclude.

 

 

Fitness Level: Easy/Moderate

Will take short hikes on land over uneven terrain, up and down gradual hills to get to an overlook of the fjords. On one day we will go for a longer hike, out for most of the day, to search for wildlife and landscape photos.  This is optional as there are plenty of other things to do near the shore or on the boat.

The Boat

We will live aboard a sailing schooner during the workshop that is built and well equipped for the arctic environment.  All meals, sleeping and showers are handled aboard the boat. Below is the deck plan for the boat

If you want to see pictures, HERE is a gallery of the inside of the vessel

 

Cost

The cost of the workshop is €9650.  The USD equivalent will be determined by exchange rates at the time of payment.  Payments can be made via wire transfer or credit card.   See below for the short list of what is and what is not included in the workshop price.

 

 

Cancellation Policy

Because this is an international workshop which requires us to commit resources well in advance, the cancellation policy is a bit different than normal.   If you cancel your trip and the workshop is otherwise filled, we will refund you the full amount you have paid towards the tuition, minus a $150 service charge. If you cancel and the workshop does not fill, then you will be refunded according to the following schedule, based on the full fee of the workshop:

• Greater than 121 days from the start date of the workshop – full refund amount paid, minus $150
• 120-91 days: 75% refund
• 90-61 days: 50% refund
• Less than 60 days: no refund

Refunds will be paid by the same method that the original payment was made and will be initiated within 72 hours of the time that the request is approved.

If you are interested in receiving more information or have questions about this, please reach out to me soon, via the email button below.