CW0417_FEA4_greenland.indd 60 60 april 2017 cruisingworld.com Chasing Icebergs Fjord, off , . Frances B,aMason 44,isanchored inthegrandeur of BY TOM ZYDLER STORY ANDPHOTOS NAVIGATION ANDPLENTY OFICE. MIDNIGHT SUN,CHALLENGING COAST OFGREENLANDPROVIDES A CRUISEALONG THEWESTERN 2/15/17 6:03 PM CW0417_FEA4_greenland.indd 61 2/15/17 6:03 PM 61 april 2017 cruisingworld.com CW0417_FEA4_greenland.indd 62 62 april 2017 cruisingworld.com 2/15/17 6:03 PM CW0417_FEA4_greenland.indd 63 We a convenient harborofrefuge alongthecoast. About southofNuuk, 30nauticalmiles Færingehavn makes enthusiasm for the area was contagious, so we his followed so contagious, forthearea was enthusiasm in thetown station—clearedtheboatinto thecountry. His ofGreenland, andhere,aDane—­ omy andsecurity spaces openforvisitingyachts.Denmarktakes careoftheecon- hooked onto floating-dockmarinain theonly Greenland with through thehazards.In town theport ofManiitsoq, Frances B Greenland trip, innavigating andtheextraeyes useful proved Our friends Trish Hildred andDavid joinedusforthis Baily innerchannelslikeair andtakingthescenic realtourists. Frances light Balternated between sailingoffshoreinfoggy stretch alongthecoast between Færingehavn andDisko Bay. marked ­ Countless rocks,islets,islandsandsparsely towardchunks, whichfanoutwest andnorth opensea. theGreenland from ice cap.the sea Glaciers calveenormous 1740 andnowatourist hub—gianttongues ofice slidetoward corner ofDisko Bay, establishedin near Ilulissat—asettlement begins.In becoming,were fast thisiswhereheaven theeastern edgeofDiskosouthern Bay. If you whichwe are aniceberg freak, the weather eased. toThe goalwas stop in onthe aport Aasiaat, as grand mountainsandicebergs, we soon weighed anchoras of to getbackinto In thewild,rawseascapes improve. ahurry Arctic Circleat66degrees,33minutes conditions north, often Farther alongGreenland’s north western the shoreandpast thatlousyweather tendsknew to lingerinthefjordsnear Nuuk. zens live.Judging by visits,we two ourexperience previous from Greenland, wherealmostathirdofthecountry’s 56,000citi- Nuuk, cityandthecapitalof modern tical milesfrom asmall my headoutand,amazingly, Hawk therewas atanchor. sleepnowandthen.Butat0600, towould have getsome Istuck were dark.Evans,tudes, thenights,thoughshort, singlehanding, The radarwould lower notdetect lati- lowgrowlers,andinthose tered ice hadforced once. usto heave-to slowdownandeven and catching upquickly. six-day Duringthenearly scat passage, Strait three daysafter acrossDavis sailingfast us,buthewas Hawk . He nowonhis47-foot leftHawkesea Harbour, Labrador, hills. thesurrounding over We thought ofEvans Starzinger, at the lightstayed on. A andmoaned galewhistledintherigging only, since at63degrees,40minutes ontheFourth north ofJuly, mugsoftea.slipped belowto upover Night warm came,inname theretheyear before,thenwe bottom weeds duringourcruise Greenland. We of free anchoredinaspotthatwe hadfoundwas andslidoff.44, heeledover wind punchedusonthebeam,andgoodoldFrances B,ourMason thebowrammeditwhile inreverse, engine nowscreaming bow, andyelling, “Rock, theirarms beganwaving rock!” With the mywife,Nancy,Suddenly andourfriend Trish, whowere onthe andhadto upthemotorboat into rev to asquall keep moving. in therockyshore.Inside, the Iturned thewater wideras was Greenland’s challenges. plentyofnavigation waters present Færingehavn, once abusyfishingharbor, liesabout30nau- We hadjustreachedFæringehavn onthewest coastof

cold Icould blasts, steer straightforanarrow, openslot myeyes downwind,andas quitwateringturned inthe channels policeman CHASING ICEBERGS - were scattered wider and several bays promised goodshelter. bayspromised were widerandseveral scattered along Diskoand north Island’s western coastlinewherebergs the mazeofice. thenwest took course ussouth, free The new sled downhill. litthepaththrough The sun,now behind, clearly thegenoa, andFrancesunrolled Btook offwiththewindlike a Vaigat. At midnightIhad enoughof Vaigat, spun thewheel, A dark-gray heavy bandoffogappearedacrossthemouth slow.and floes. painfully against therisingchop was Motoring the boatnavigatedthroughathickening ice litter ofgrowlers for tackingacrosstheriverofglareunderpower, since by now manyhoursaway. still until thesunwent overhead, was David floating low, indistinguishable. Ithought we shouldheave-to ter ofbroken withwhitecaps andrenderedthewreckage bergs 2100, into thelowsunburned oureyes. It ourpathaglit turned andat thewindcameonstrongnose, northwestward, to and icebergs port to starboard.Up wherethe Vaigat turns Frances onacalmsea. fray onwithDisko Bpurred Island shores together. thedriftingice close thrusting We headedinto the ofDisko arm ­northward west, thennarrows, Bay; itturns by time. upon themerased white paintstood mostnames guardaroundweathered crosses, tom inclearwater. pinefencesAmong thehills, withflaking Rowing arcticcod small working thebot Icould ashore, see atanalmost-swimmableF inthesun,withsea 45degrees. as thethermometer peeledofflayers reached 70degrees crew anabandonedvillage. markingImerigssoqas The deep grasses whichwayin every leanedover ashore houses the anchorage, ing fogbankstayedInside, back,hovering. sunshineburstover track lineleftontheplotteryear before. from - The roll astony approachyardsfrom shore,we the followed narrow We were takingstupidchances. loomedhighabove. pallor ghostly water forefootofabergwhose glowed theunder green.Ourbowwent over thesea Suddenly Islowed Francespainted blobahead,so amassive Bto acrawl. thickenedthat soon into black,impenetrablefog. The radar service. ofitsInternet,­sailors because hotshowers andlaundry the Seaman’s Missionbuilding,themeetingplace ofvisiting shapedforshuntingice mooredstern-to under —was schooner cold-moldedbuilt and-owned,Nigel Irens-designed 63-foot Greenland, layatthemainwharf. —a Dubois- Louise La Thierry Rembrandtcharter schooner vanRijn,aregularvisitor inwestern America Blue Water Medalist in2003). The Dutch 168-foot Gjoa (Taonui whensailedby Tony Clubof Gooch,aCruising the BritishFestina, theDutch Albatross Lente andtheCanadian fishing boats. Hours after we tiedup, threeotheryachtsarrived: afuelingdockandroughfloatwithderelict from apart sels, for theNorthwest —lacksfacilitiesfortransientves Passage aasiaat,gathering the the mainfjordbranches. toweringsharp peaks. A glacierglowed inthedistance inoneof banked byan innerpassage mountainsand sugarloaf-shaped recommendation throughHamborgersund, andwent northward The Holy isthe Grail foriceberg chasers Vaigat, the Ejland. The fogthinnednearKronprinsen Threading the beganafterThe iceberg chase inahaze fadedastern Aasiaat place for vessels bound north — some —some boundnorth place forvessels - - - - 2/15/17 6:03 PM 63 april 2017 cruisingworld.com CW0417_FEA4_greenland.indd 64 64 april 2017 cruisingworld.com 2/15/17 6:03 PM e l c r i C c i t c r A

GREENLAND W 5 ° 3 Ilulissat Vaigat

7 0 ° N Disko Bay °W Aasiaat 0 4 daviſ ſtrait Maniitsoq

Nuuk

W ° 45 6 5 °N W N °W 0° 60 ° 55 5 cruisingworld.com cruisingworld.com

65 april 2017 april

The fog hovers just outside Frances B’s anchorage, off the abandoned

fi shing village of Imerigssoq. TUMINO SHANNON CAIN MAP BY

CW0417_FEA4_greenland.indd 65 2/15/17 6:03 PM CW0417_FEA4_greenland.indd 66 66 april 2017 cruisingworld.com pointed (population thedirectionto the largestsettlement sailed by, twin-peaked the3,380-foot-high UummannaqIsland the topup from ridge. The Greenland ice capglowed, icebergs astupendouspanoramaopened scramble, and-knees vertical us. above floatedfrom thehillside down At the cost ofahands- spent, deadintheshallows. ofsummerplants The fragrance shoals ofcapelinwrinkledthewater’s surface, manyofthem floatedboat companions aroundinwhite intheopensea, flocks, good enoughforour400feetofchain.Fulmars, common usually end. ashelfatthevery less till The anchorwent downin70feet, Island leadusinto anarrow-necked inlet,itswaters bottom- of sheer cliffwalls. Ever hopeful, we lettheescarpments Appat ofanotherplace tosearch anchor, ourboatslippedalongpast corkedwas vanished.In withgrowlers.Disappointmentsoon rightinthechannel,andinnerbasin large iceberg aground later, at 0300, Frances justoutsidea Bhovered walked hills. easily from tacular views A year withspec inQeqertat all-weather anchorage year, we’d promised Trish anice-free, andDavid onourvisittheprevious in Greenland. Based precise routeplanningjustdoesn’t work mountainside. the shadowsofavertical raced ontheblack-sand in beachofahamletset sun, huskieswere curledasleep, andchildren a tinywharf. Ashore, arcticchardriedinthe takenan iceberg had already near thebestberth chor; depthsran90feetnextto theshore,and at 71degrees,30minutes we couldn’t north, an- inthebestofhiscanvasses. views There these RockwellAmerican artist, Kent, immortalized mainland to theice cap. Another prominent ciers hiddenwithinbaysthatpenetrate the ridges. Riversoficebergs streamby outofgla- mountains peakinginrazor-sharp pinnacled Its faces onto , east dramatic village, ofthefjord. thewestern as sentinel Ejland rises A dark,forbiddingheapofcliffs,Ubekendt Frances B onto carried UummannaqFjord. ofaestheticinspiration. a source It thatBradfordpointed to seems Greenland as works were commissioned by theRoyal Family. ofhis inBritain,wheresome him famouseven berg enthusiast. The Greenland made voyage tovoyages Labrador, anice- truly Bradfordwas Having madesixice-paintingnorth. already inthefarthest-accessiblematic ice landscapes School, chartered theshipto reachthedra - a prominentpainter theHudson River from inhistory.iceberg chasers William Bradford, steam thefirst bark),visitingin1869,carried Pole Panther well. seekers inas called (asailand Island.Ellesmere Now andthenfailedNorth ing Baffin Bayandall theway Bay to Melville work to receive ofwhalingvessels used scores qeqertarsuaq (formerly Godhavn) knownas After by sailingnorth western Disko Island, - - north asDisko Bay. scattered bergs make itasfar grees north,onlyvery widely Greenland sideabove 63 de to year. However, onthe extent canvary from year tered icebergs. Naturally, ice encountered onlywidelyscat away from Labrador, we Once about50to 60 miles north ontheGreenland coast. north to about63 degrees Labrador at about53 degrees we took arhumblinefrom two voyages to Greenland, and Davis Strait. For the past uation intheLabrador Sea while monitoring theice sit we would anchoreachnight the Labrador coast where north, we have goneover to there willbe. makes landfall, themore ice 63 degrees north—ifone coast —thefarther southof Davis Strait. OntheGreenland ther northinthemiddleof becomes more scattered far ter alotoffloating ice, which to Greenland andwillencoun west coast ofNewfoundland sail directly from thenorth opens uphere. Someyachts Belle Isle. The choice ofroutes Labrador coast intheStrait of bunches upagainst the early-summer ice ­ which isthenfree ofice. The west coast ofNewfoundland, or earlyJune, sailalongthe and Newfoundland. Inlate May heading outinto CabotStrait Regroup inBaddeckbefore Island andinto Bras d’OrLake. work your way to CapeBreton your boat to Nova Scotia, and cruise ofGreenland? First, get Have your sightssetona Going North In ourfour recent trips States andpreparing Frances Bforanothertriptothefar north. Tom andNancy United Zydler theSoutheastern cruising arecurrently through theLabradorSea­ course southward Straittocrossing Davis Resolution Island inCanada andthe Maniitsoq, hoursaway, afew pointfor becameourdeparture streamsofmeltwater roaringwithfast underneath. into caverns meltingquickly. was the hills, Sinkholesonitssurface opened theiceabove cliff, theglacier,from darkenedsoil blown with Frances B (opposite bottom). climbers animpromptu perform lunchtimeconcert aboard Water Medal winnerBobShepton andhiscrew ofrock of Kangaatsiaq (opposite top). Adventurer andCCA Blue forsledSummertime meanseasyliving dogsinthevillage usually usually ------anchored at the end of Sermilinguaq Fjord.Just­anchored attheendofSermilinguaq Frances B entered Hamborgersund and again access to theglaciersofUummannaqFjord, their nestsashore. To make upformissingthe raced between thespratshoalsand ­feverishly ing colony —­ toof arcticterns hadreturned theirbreed- Fortune Bay. Off Grønne Ejland,thousands to theredbuttesclimb again ofDisko Island’s we hadhighlighted onourcharts. We longedto andvisitplacesnight —asignalto headsouth In August, thesunbeganvanishingafter mid- thetown cliffs. leaned against under siege:Flat-topped monster slabsofice the islandto town to lookattheharbor, now about to sailto Baffin Island. Wewalked across firstsin Greenland, they were several scored Having sea. thefreezing thousand feetover hangingacouplebound intheirportaledge of talented whenstorm- were musicians,even also hemissed. the walls fourclimbers The current and nowtakes otheradventurousclimbersto 79 Reverend climbingatage Bobretiredfrom toreach themostdeath-defyingwalls climb. doesn’t ice, hebargesthroughitto justchase on Dodo’s Delight (his Arctic chariotof33feet) (winner ofCCA’s Blue Water Medal in1996) BobSheptonboat blasted into theanchorage. reef kept theice outside. Around midday, asail- ing thebayblocked thewind,andanoffshore on thewest shore,openedup.- Hills surround abay out.Spraglebugt, around thecorner was Uummannaq Island. Reaching harbor thesmall at acouple endof ofknotsby thesouth ­ running and bergybits—silently convoy ofice —bigbergs,ice hummocks Fifteen mileslater, a­ we could see cold!mainland metushead-on,anditwas we venturedbackout. Danish pastries, 1,200) inthefjord. With dreamsofcafes and The sailing season inGreenland isshort. The sailingseason In halfanhour, the the25-knotwindfrom almost abandonedin2013—and toward home. downwind relentless 2/15/17 6:03 PM WILD, WILD LABRADOR

CW0417_FEA4_greenland.indd 67 2/15/17 6:03 PM CW0417_FEA4_greenland.indd 68 68 april 2017 cruisingworld.com 2/15/17 6:03 PM CW0417_FEA4_greenland.indd 69 long hike. backdrop duringa provide animposing FjordSermilinguaq The icebergs along 2/15/17 6:03 PM 69 april 2017 cruisingworld.com