During the night, we will have completed our passage through the 160km long Kangerlussuaq Fjord. After breakfast aboard the ship, we will bid farewell to the ship's staff as zodiac boats shuttle us back to Kangerlussuaq.
It is not difficult for one to see that Kangerlussuaq’s landscape was largely shaped by the last Ice Age, some 18,000 years ago. The mountains are rounded and soft, and many meltwater lakes remain. From the Greenland Ice Sheet, the meltwater cuts its way through the porous moraine landscape and flows into Kangerlussuaq Fjord.
Kangerlussuaq’s present-day climate is largely influenced by its well-sheltered location between Greenland’s Ice Sheet, the fjord and mountains, contributing to its stable conditions and roughly 300 clear nights per year.
This close proximity to the Ice Sheet, combined with the continental climate great influences to the local weather conditions. The dry climate, combined with warm winds that “fall” from the Ice Sheet, can result in summer temperatures up to 30°C, but then fall to an extreme -40°C in winter, making it the coldest inhabited area in Greenland.
Your final excursion in Greenland will be the Tundra Safari. Travel in tough, off-road 4WD coaches adapted to the Arctic’s summer and winter terrain. Drive through the beautiful tundra landscape, maybe spotting musk oxen roaming freely in their natural habitat. As they can be aggressive and charge without warning, we can’t get too close to them, so your binoculars will come in handy here.
Learn about the tundra’s vegetation as well as any of the flowering plants, including the dense scrub that grows on the south-facing rocky slopes and the wooded thickets of arctic willow that thrive along the rivers and streams.
On this excursion, we often drive up to the mountain of Tacan. It is a mountain south of Kangerlussuaq that offers fantastic panoramic views of the valleys, rivers, Kangerlussuaq and even parts of the Greenland Ice Sheet. We will take a few breaks during the excursion, so you can stretch your legs while enjoying the peacefulness, the fresh air and views of the distant horizon.
You will have some time to explore Kangerlussuaq on your own, until it's time to bid farewell 'Ajunnginniarna' in Greenlandic and fly back to Reykjavik, where on arrival you will be met and taken to your hotel. Tonight we have included dinner together at the hotel.