L’Austral, Expedition along East Coast of Greenland ex Kangerlussuaq to Tromso – 15 Aug 2021

15 Night cruise departing from Kangerlussuaq to Tromso onboard L’Austral.

In partnership with National Geographic Expeditions.

PONANT invites you to discover the east coast of Greenland during a new 16-day expedition cruise on board L’Austral, and venture into an extremely remote part of the world, source of fascination to generations of explorers.

From Kangerlussuaq, your ship will set sail south, before reaching the east coast of Greenland, known for its wild natural environments, its alpine landscapes, and its sea ice carried along the Transpolar Drift.

You will then sail along the Blosseville Coast, named after the French captain who saw it for the first time in 1833. Here, the ice sheet meets the sea.

You will discover the Scoresby Sund, the world’s largest fjord network and the Ittoqqortoormiit Region, home to a small community of Greenlanders: this will be the occasion to find out about the life of the last hunters in the polar regions.

Your ship will also head for the Northeast Greenland National Park, the largest national park in the world and a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve: here, there is no trace of human life, just alpine magically coloured landscapes as far as the eye can see and powerful glaciers.

L’Austral will then cross the Arctic Circle before making its way to Jan Mayen Island, which was very dear to Captain Jean-Baptiste Charcot. Located at the limit of the Arctic and North-Atlantic oceans, this remote and uninhabited volcanic island was once a major whaling base and is home to large colonies of birds.

We are privileged guests in these extreme lands where we are at the mercy of weather and ice conditions. The itinerary, landings on certain sites and the observation of certain wildlife cannot be guaranteed. They vary from day to day, making each PONANT cruise a unique experience. The Captain and the Expedition Leader will make every effort to ensure that your experience is as rich as possible, while complying with the safety rules and instructions imposed by the AECO.

Highlights of this cruise:

Kangerlussuaq
From 1941 to 1992, the town of Kangerlussuaq in Greenland was home to an American military base. Nowadays, thanks to its international airport, it has become a transit point for travellers seeking adventure in the Far North. Located to the north of the Arctic Circle, this town is the starting point of magnificent discoveries surrounded by unspoiled nature. Indeed, just a few dozen kilometres from there it is possible to get close to the Greenland ice sheet, the largest body of ice in the Northern Hemisphere. From Kangerlussuaq, admire also the superb landscapes of tundra in autumnal colours, where Arctic hares, musk oxen, Arctic foxes, reindeer, falcons and eagles live.

Southern coast of Greenland
Set sail in the traces of the Norwegian explorer Erik Le Rouge by travelling along the south coast of Greenland. Your ship will head deep into the longest network of fjords in the region, the Prinz Christian Sund. This sumptuous natural canal, surrounded by craggy mountains and impressive glaciers will offer you stunning landscapes. During your journey, you will also get a glimpse of the spectacular cliffs of Akpatok, a mysterious and uninhabited island where it is not uncommon in the summertime to encounter bears, drawn by the impressive colony of thick-billed murres that have taken up residence there.

Ammassalik Region
Still almost unknown just a century ago, the east coast of Greenland remains the most authentic and majestic region. Here, the alpine mountains merge intimately with the sea, while the fjords are adorned with high snow-capped peaks and drifting icebergs. Follow in the wake of Captain Jean-Baptiste Charcot’s famous ship, the Pourquoi Pas?, which set off with its crew to discover Ammassalik, a small island of primitive and wild beauty where the Inuit people chose to live. The name of this island is a reference to the capelin, a small flamboyant silver coloured fish, whose presence in the thousands announces to inhabitants the return of spring. A surprising discovery in a spectacular setting.

Blosseville Coast
Aboard your ship, follow in the footsteps of Jules Poret de Blosseville, a French explorer and sailor. In 1833, aboard La Lilloise, he set off to discover this isolated and unexplored part of eastern Greenland and gave French names to various sites on the coast. The adventure probably has an unfortunate outcome, since the crew was never found. This uninhabited territory, which now bears his name, lies to the south of Scoresby Sund. Surrounded by ice, icebergs and pieces of pack ice, Blosseville Coast is one of these wild and hard-to-reach places that very few people are lucky enough to explore.

Ittoqqortoormiit Region
Located between the largest national park and the longest system of fjords in the world, the town of Ittoqqortoormiit, whose name means “great house” in Greenlandic, is one of the remotest inhabited places in the world. Covered with ice and snow for nine months of the year, you will be able to discover the ancestral way of life of the last hunters of the polar region. As soon as the thickness of the ice floe allows, they set out on the trail of walruses, seals, narwhals, musk ox and polar bears, travelling by traditional dog sleds.

Northeast Greenland National Park
With a craggy coastline formed by gigantic fjords, magnificent alpine mountains looming over them, the shores of north-east Greenland offer breathtaking landscapes and are home to the largest national park in the world. Covering an area of around one million square kilometres, almost half the island, the North-East Greenland National Park, a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, is a particularly isolated region. Cut off for many months of the year by the ice floe, it is renowned for its pristine nature and rich wildlife.

Jan Mayen Island, Svalbard
The island of Jan Mayen, belonging to Norway, lies hidden off Greenland’s coastlines, lost between the Arctic Ocean and the North Atlantic Ocean. This small piece of land is inhabited by only a handful of Norwegian meteorologists. Tongues of ice descend from its volcanic summit, which culminates at 2,227 metres and is covered with a thick glacial coat. These tongues join the sea, between ranges of black volcanic rocks at times tinged with red. If the sky is clement, you will have the chance to glimpse the summit, decked out in magnificent light. The visit of a small fin whale will perhaps enable you to complete this memorable picture.

Tromso
In the north of the Arctic circle you’ll discover Tromsø, a secluded town located in the county of Troms. Norwegians call it the “Paris of the north”. You’ll soon see why when you discover its extensive neoclassical architectural heritage. A stunning example is the Arctic cathedral, a major monument whose stylistic purity echoes the outline of the mountains surrounding the town.