I had envisioned how this day would go as I make my way to Kangerlussuaq Airport for my domestic flight to Ilulissat. Little did I know that what I imagined would come crashing down as my flight was delayed for more than 6 hours due to technical & weather issues. C'est la vie.
This wouldn't have been so bad but for the fact that Kangerlussuaq Airport - the biggest airport in Greenland - is so small that there's really not much to explore. So of course, I used the opportunity to play a game of people watching, had lunch, walked around the airport area (the weather was quite lovely with all the white snow, and the airport windows provided mountainous views, so I could've been stranded somewhere much worse), all in an attempt to while away the hours.
It seems that the small population (with only 500+ pax in Kangerlussuaq, and about 50,000+ Greenlandic people roaming about) lends itself to some intimate knowledge of your neighbours. There's a general sense of camaraderie between the locals whom I saw milling about at the airport, where everyone seemed to know each other and would strike up conversations among themselves while I sat apart from the circle. It's an interesting dynamic to watch, and it's a comfort to know that you will always know your neighbours and community.
After 6 hours of waiting, I did manage to get on the flight (I feared it would've been cancelled altogether), and finally arrived in Ilulissat when it's dark out - so there went my plans for the day, heh. The Malay Muslim adage "Kita hanya merancang, Allah yang menentukan" is very apt here. (Lit: They plan, God plans - and God is the best of planners.)
Upon arrival at Ilulissat airport (with a bewildering transit at Aasiat airport, where we had to disembark the plane, go inside the very small airport, and then go back out to board another plane which would take us to Ilulissat), I was greeted by Hotel Icefiord's driver, who would take me to my lodging for the next 4 days.
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| Hotel Icefiord - Gotta love the ubiquitous romantic lighting the Scandinavians & Greenland seem to love |
With only three days left for a full exploration of Ilulissat, I had signed up for three activities which would take place on different days - snowshoe hiking, dog sledding, a city walk, and a hike to Semermiut glacier. I opted to follow World of Greenland for the snowshoe hike & dog sledding, and another tour to chase the aurora. Unfortunately (again) for me, the skies did not clear at all at night during my stay in Ilulissat, so there was no chance for me to glimpse a view of that elusive lady.
Snowshoe Hike
My first full day in Ilulissat started with the snowshoe hike. I made my way from my hotel to World of Greenland's office situated in the middle of Ilulissat small town, which I would know intimately during my stay in Greenland. Snow had been falling almost incessantly, which made the walk slippery where the ice had melted and tramped over - and so I repeat the nightmare I had while walking to the train station which would take us from Narvik to Abisko back in 2017 lol (which reminds me, I have yet to post that particular adventure, because there are just too many photos to sort through, heh).
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| My daily trek from Hotel Icefiord to Ilulissat town |
After meeting up with the tour guide for the day (Mads), I was acquainted with the only other tourist who will be joining me on the snowshoe hike, Sarah - a Danish doctor who has been posted in Ilulissat for a month (so jealous). Apparently tourists are so scarce this time around (peak season would only start in Feb / March) that tour guides would know all the tourists by name, heh. I did see a lot of the same faces milling around town, which only proves the point.
Our hike would follow the Semermiut Yellow trail, which starts from the power plant and ends at the old heliport - while you can technically do this hike yourself, if you're not used to the area, it would be better to do the hike with a tour guide or a local as most of the trail & its markers are not visible due to the heavy snow. This was especially true on the day of my hike - snow was falling non-stop, and the day was cloudy through the night.
Despite the weather, Mads was game enough to continue the hike (even with only two tourists to guide, when they would usually require four).
It was truthfully another world of experience for a Malaysian like me, as I was not used to snow and super cold weather even after some exposure during my stay in the US & my trips to the Arctic - having to trudge through deep snow wearing what seems like tennis rackets attached to my boots, lol. Can't say the snowshoe wasn't effective though - I almost wish I had it for my next solo hike to Semermiut on the next few days!
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| Ilulissat town |
In all honesty, even with the crappy weather, I truly loved the hike. The sounds of our snowshoes scraping against the underlying rocks and ground as we wade through the snow, the snow falling all around us, the sounds of our breathing as we hiked our way through the trail, and the almost oppressive silence all around us makes us feel like the only three person left alive on Greenland during that hike.
We took a much-needed break in the cold at our "picnic point" - this would typically be where you will be able to catch a glimpse of the Semermiut glaciers, but the snow and cloud was so thick that we can barely make out what's in front of us. Regardless, Mads took out some hot chocolate and biscuits for some snacks. Truly one of the most riveting silence I have ever had the pleasure to experience.
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Dog Sledding
Another one of those must-do activities you can opt for during winter in Greenland: dog sledding. This still remains one of the mode of transportation for some Inuit settlers, when the ice thickness permits it. With global warming changing our climate patterns, it's anyone's guess on how long this practice would be able to last (honestly, the scientists could probably tell you, but will any politicians listen? Spoiler: As of April 2020, no, they would not.)
Dog sledding was an interesting experience - the majority of the mushers are Greenlandic Inuit, thus communication is next to impossible if you don't speak Greenlandic or Danish (the locals are fluent in both languages, and I suppose English is optional to the Inuits?). I was lucky that the other person who would be joining me in the activity was a local by the name of Daana, who could converse with the musher on my behalf when needed. She came along for the ride with an honest to good filming equipment - which she put to good use by filming the landscape (and me, heh - hey ma, I'm on Greenland TV) once we arrived on top.
My initial expectation was for us to ride through the expansive Greenlandic tundra, so imagine my surprise when the musher actually took us up the mountains. It was steep going up, and the pack of dogs were struggling to pull us before long. The musher said something to Daana, who informed me we would need to go down from the sled and run uphill while pushing the dog sled in order to gain back some momentum for the dogs to pull us forward again.
You have no idea the exertion and exercise I had to go through doing this - I was in between laughing in disbelief and gritting my teeth while pushing through it. It was no joke trying to push the sled uphill while running through thick snow, and it was something I'd never thought I had to experience. Having said that: IT WAS FUN 😂
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| I felt like an Oompa Loompa wearing this lmao - it's essential to keep you warm though |
When we arrived at the top of the mountain, we hopped on back to the sled & continued our way through the snow with only the sounds of our movement to keep us company. Whatever I had expected to find on this journey, this was even beyond my wildest imagination.
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| Daana, the local Greenlandic who was my partner for the dog sledding activity |
We stopped at a viewpoint where - surprise - it was foggy & clouded over. Truly, the weather was not being accommodating during my stay, heh. It was still a beautiful experience though, and Daana got to work with her video camera while I snapped a few pictures for keepsake.
We then made our way back to our initial location, and there was another fun experience awaiting me unknowingly - we would make our way down back that steep slope, thankfully without us having to push the sled.
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| Our musher & the dogs having a well-deserved rest |
You know that feeling when you ride the rollercoaster, and there's a moment before the sharp plunge you can see at the end of the horizon before you actually plunge down? Yeah, that was how I felt during that steep slope downwards, except there was nothing to hold on to and there were no safety bars holding me down to the sled, so there wouldn't have been any surprise if I had gone tumbling down the sled and down the mountains (wouldn't that have been fun). It was definitely an adrenaline rush.
I would do it again in a heartbeat.
Hike to Semermiut Glacier
Alas, my last full day in Ilulissat came way too fast. On my last day, I decided to take the Blue trail to the Semermiut glacier, as Mads and my hotel receptionist had assured me that the way would be well marked and there are boardwalks to take me there, so I shouldn't have any problem going forward.
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| Armed with a map and trail markers, what could possibly go wrong? |
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| Of course something would go wrong. Where did the trail go??? |
As luck would have it, there were another two travellers (or locals?) with the same idea as me, but they came well-equipped with snow shoes. I watched them as they put on their snow shoes and made their way through the trail with little to no trouble, staying as close as possible to the trail markers and boardwalk where it is visible.
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| My saviours putting on their snow shoes - thanks, ladies, you have no idea what you did for me on that day |
As the only way was going forward, I followed in their footsteps.
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| How could I not follow? Look at that amazing view. |
It was my last full day, and I couldn't have asked for better conditions, as the sun has finally shown itself and the weather seemed to be clearing the snow and fog. I felt like crying when I saw how beautiful the past three days could've been.
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| I could finally see the glaciers! |
Before long, the two women in front of me had picked up their pace as I was too busy meandering around to take photos, and I lost sight of them once I headed to the top of one of the mountains along the trail. The way was blocked with a lot of snow, and where the snow had melted, it had given way to slippery ice, making it twice as hard for me to find my footing as I was not equipped with snow shoe and only had my crampons on.
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| Uh, guys... where'd you go 😠|
Having no sight of the ladies in front of me and not knowing where the trail is, I had the disappointing choice of going back the way I came.
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| C'est la vie. Let's have one more look at those glaciers before I turn back. |
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| Look at the massive scale of that iceberg and glacier. That small yellow boat that you could see could fit 100-200pax. |
As it is, though, having seen the glacier in all its grandeur was truly enough for me.
Ilulissat City Walk
As I was making my way back to town from the hike, the weather continued to behave and I loved that I saw a different sight of Ilulissat as I walked about - honestly don't know how Greenland, Iceland and the Scandinavians coped with little to no sunlight during winter. (A certain video from Iceland's Oskaar came to mind.)
The walk from the Blue trail towards the town center was pleasant enough, made more so by the perfect weather and a few friendly sled dog puppies who followed me onwards, curious. We were warned not to entertain the dogs and to just ignore them since they shouldn't be trained to be friendly with people as their main purpose was to be trained as sled dogs. It was sort of sad to think about, but I guess for them it's the normal practice as they do need the sled dogs for their own purposes.
I joined the crowd who was waiting around for the city walk tour to start, seeing a few familiar faces - mostly people whom I've seen milling around the town doing some sort of tour activities. The tour itself was interesting, as the guide took us to various notable points around town - such as the fishing harbour, the oldest building still standing, several buildings with historical significance - as she told us about all the little tidbits that makes up Ilulissat. It was an interesting tour, but I did wish there was more in-depth history of the locality, as well as the population who made up the township. I was curious how the Inuits and Greenland Danes are co-existing together, and it seemed like there are some sort of segregation between them, although there were not too many details forthcoming on that - I suppose it's not something that they would prefer to highlight.
Overall, if you do want to know some history of Ilulissat, I would recommend you to join this tour, but know that you would only glean the surface. To know more, I suppose I would need to spend more time exploring the town and talk to more of the locals next time.
All in all, I had some really great memories of Greenland, and although I had a lot of troubles due to the inclement weather, the trip turned out to be one of those things that you appreciate more in hindsight. Yes, the weather had sucked, but I was determined to push through with the activities despite that, and was happy that I got to experience even a smidgen of what life is like in Ilulissat.
I would love to come again and spend more time in Greenland, preferably in summer because of the long daylight (although I am told by many, many internet people that I should be prepared for the incessant mosquitoes, so that's something to keep in mind).
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