Douglas Easton Travel Blog - Douglas Easton Travel

June 01, 2007

Ammassalik, Greenland

Few places capture the wonder of the frozen Arctic quite like Greenland. Its cascading peaks and gelid inland waterways are a photographer's dream. Massive, turquoise-colored icebergs (some as large as several city blocks) floating offshore, and even in the harbors, are evidence of nature's majesty.

We arrived yesterday by helicopter in the small coastal village of Ammassalik, population 1800. The neat, colorfully-painted hillside homes lend this village a cheery feel. The little port, flecked with melting pack ice and icebergs of varying size, is framed by soaring, dramatic, snow-clad peaks. It's almost too much for the eye to absorb.

The people themselves, virtially all Inuit (what most Americans would call Eskimo) exude a gracious spirit and are quick with a smile and a warm hello. We were amazed to learn that Ammassalik is shut off from the world (except by helicopter) for 8 months of the year when the sea freezes over and the ice pack sets in, preventing any ships from arriving. So isolated is this village that it receives all of it's yearly supplies in only one cargo shipment (usually early July) that must sustain the town for the next 12 months. A few years ago, the village ran out of toilet paper before the arrival of the annual cargo shipment... "Houston, we have a problem."

Nothing is grown or manufactured in Ammassalik. The sole businesses appear to be fishing, tourism and native handicrafts. Most of the handicrafts are wood carvings of seals, narwhals, polar bears and whales. Many of these are excellent likenesses.

Fish caught in spring and summer must be preserved (through drying or canning) to last the l

ong winter. One sees these hanging along the edges of the roofs of many of the houses.

In spite of its isolation, Ammassalik has much to offer the visitor. Dog sledding, snowmobiling, and boat excursions (where one can even walk on an iceberg!) are all popular. In winter, one can ski, as Ammassalik has its own chairlift and ski slope.

From the comfort of our hotel, we witnessed the changing of the season as a procession of icebergs and melting ice floes drifted slowly toward the open sea. The current is gentle but continuous and the harbor changes appearance every few hours.

Not to be forgotten are the village's huskies. Summer is not their favorite time of year as they really do love the cold and are unable to perform the job they appear to love so much. Their lament is audible in the cacophony of howls that float above the town, yearning for the disappearing winter.

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