Our second attempt to anchor off the shores at Nanortalik, was successful and although it was a little overcast, (such a contrast to yesterday when it was a balmy 26C in Qaqortoq) there was no wind and it was about 15C when we arrived at about 7.30am having woken to a brilliant sunrise earlier in the morning and we were looking forward to exploring the town especially as we passed several icebergs on our way to the port.
Nanortalik is the southernmost town on one of many tiny islands that girt the southern coast of Greenland. The port was founded in 1797 as a Dutch whaling station and around the port a collection of stone and wooden buildings which date back to the 19th century , are still in use. Today, Nanortalik Is a pretty fishing village which has a small harbour, a backdrop of imposing jagged, mountain peaks and clusters of brightly painted houses intermingled with shops and small businesses along the main streets. Throughout Greenland communities are small and intimate. Nanortalik has a population of 1550 people, with 1200 living in five nearby villages on the island.
Like Qaqortoqqa, the harbour in Nanortalik is not deep enough for large ships to berth so we had to use tender boats to reach the wharf area. We had passed several icebergs on our way into the bay but we were surprised how close our ship was anchored to a good size one in the harbour at Nanatalik. From the deck it seemed we could have almost touched the iceberg beside us.
The towering treeless mountains behind the little township, dwarfed the buildings and homes stretched around the coastline and we could well imagine how cold and isolated this community would be when the mountains were frozen in ice and snow, the town blanketed in metres high snow drifts and the sea a frozen block, except for a narrow sea-lane which is opened up by icebreakers (if conditions permit) to allow fishing trawlers and supply ships to depart and return with their hauls. Today, a heliport operates for emergencies, delivery of supplies when the sea-lanes are impassable or for adventurers who are enthusiastic about ice-pick climbing on the frozen mountain walls in winter. They can have this adventure to themselves!
We caught a tender boat from the ship to the shore. It took about 20 minutes to reach the shore where we headed straight for the tourist office which was a short walk around the shoreline in the harbour. Looking back we could see that our Sea Princess was also dwarfed by the mountains across the bay. We could also see another iceberg at a good distance from her bow . We picked up a map of the island sat the tourist office and decided that we'd just walk from the town to the base of Quassik Mountain which is 308 metres high. There was a dotted line on the map which stated that the summit walk was "a very nice walk" which could be covered in 2-3 hours depending on how many times hikers stopped for enjoying the views and taking photographs. However,we decided that we'd not climb the mountain because there was another trail that went around the mountain and it was described on a billboard, as "a nice easy stroll"- take all the time you need.
One thing we noticed as we walked was that the whole island is strewn with boulders of varying sizes. Later these would become rest spots for us as we hiked around the rugged trails near the shoreline. Amazingly the people of Nanatalik have built their homes amongst these boulders and they often leave their prams, bikes, toys outside among them because their homes are not large. The buildings are usually made from pre-cut timber but there must be insulation in the walls to protect from the harsh artic winds and freezing temperatures. Maintenance must be needed after the snow and ice have thawed
All of the homes had chimneys that indicated to us that heating must be from oil heaters as there are no trees for fueling fires. In the past communities relied upon whale oil or seal blubber as fuel for heating and lighting. Today all homes have electricity and water supplied to them but we noticed that the harsh conditions causes a build up of mould on the exterior walls of the houses, and wood rot is a problem due to corroding effects of sea mists. Summertime must also be maintenance-time for roads and buildings. We noticed that some modern buildings are beginning to use aluminium cladding which can withstand artic conditions and has less maintence costs.
We headed down the road past homes towards the mountain and found the cemetery at the edge of the town alongside the waters' edge. A large white cross has been erected on the shoreline with the mountains in the background reflected in the calm waters of the bay, we were reminded that because of Jesus's life, death and resurrection we too can have peace with the Maker of heaven and earth by trusting in Him.
As we neared the end of the road we passed the last rows of brightly painted houses in the northern part of the island. At one house we saw a husky dog resting in the summer flowers. He pricked up his ears when we greeted him and his companion also responded by looking at us. Huskies are beautiful dogs! We met a group of them in Alaska last year and they just love exercise. We just hope that these two get to work and run about when their owners return. Maybe they are resting up after a long winter of dog sledding. A few minutes later we were joined by a cute puppy who decided to escort us down the road for quite some time and it seemed that he was going to join us for our hike until we reached the track at the base of the mountain where he suddenly stopped 'dead in his tracks' and barked a warning to us! Letting us know that; 'he sure wasn't continuing and nor should we!' He repeated his bark looking back from where we'd come, and turned and he left us. We have no idea why he accomplied us in the first place for the only food we had was water and eucalyptus lollies.
We started down on the track that led around the mountain. It crossed over tundra grasses, mosses and rocks and it was fairly obvious to follow so we began to follow the trail alongside an inlet from the harbour. The temperature was about 18C, not as warm as when we were in Qaqortoqqa yesterday, but we were wearing thermals, gloves and beanies and the warmth of the sun could be felt when it wasn't covered by clouds. The air was fresh and invigorating. The colours and textures of the tundra vegetation, mossy rocks and lichen-patterned boulders played tricks on our perception and prediction of wherè to take the next step so we tired easily so we took our time to rest on the huge boulders or rocky outcrops and just 'drink in' the vistas.
Walking on tundra is like walking on tiny trampolenes. The tiny floral vegetation is sometimes spongey and bouncy and / or soft, brittle or damp and hard: suffice it to say it is very uneven and in amongst the tundra plants were tiny rock pools of water, running streamlets and rocks and boulders of all shapes and sizes. Fascinating but unpredictable for sometimes our shoes disappeared in a soggy bog or a grassy mound that looked secure but was covering a hole in the ground or a waterhole. Sometimes the whole ground surface was covered in a tangle of boulders, tundra plants, moss, thick long grass mounds,ponds, rock platforms and soggy sponges which squirted a black liquid when trodden on. It was all very awkward and I (Joy) needed to think about where I placed each and every foot step because I was aware that having broken my ankle last year, I needed to be sure that my foot was firm. I still enjoyed our tundra hike but I was intentionally intent on concentrating on every step that if I wanted to see the wonderfully new sights around, that I need to remember to STOP and then look around. So that's exactly what I did. 
After about an hour of hiking we were joined by a crew member, Sandy from Indonesia, who works in the kitchen, so we had not met him. He asked if he could join us and of course we were happy to have his company and to share the hike with him. He had not intended doing a long hike but had spotted us in the distance and caught up to us. However, he had no water with him and after another half hour of walking we stopped to rest and shared our water with him.
We moved on stepping from rock to rock where possible and bomping on the tundra vegetation when there was no choice - for we realised that this is a fragile environment and we wanted to tread on it lightly. Then as we arced toward the back of the mountain we all stood amazed at the scene that greeted us. We were looking into an inlet where we saw many, icebergs standing like marble-white statues in the still waters. By now the sky was overcast and shadows and light rays played upon the water. We felt so priveleged to have 'happened upon this wonderous sight' Sandy was so excited to see the icebergs and madly photographed them.
But there was more! We heard it before we saw it! A whale surfaced and dived and spouted moisture into the air. It floated and breathed loudly- we could hear it clearly from the shore. Sandy could not believe his eyes and we were all awestruck as we sat and watched 'our' whale frolicking along, around and 'under' one of the icebergs. We think it was catching crill which were attracted by the light that reflected from the iceberg. We watched this beautiful graceful giant of the sea for ages and delighted in every sound and movement it made. After soaking up the atmosphere and vista-sphere of these moments, Sandy suddenly realised that he had to leave us because he had to be back on the ship to report for duty at 2.30pm. It was already 1pm and he had at least 75 minutes hiking to get back to the shore and a 15 -20 minute ride in the tender boat to get to the ship. He thanked us and then shot off at a jogging pace to return back down the trail.
We pressed on and as we walked the sun suddenly filled the sky with wonderous light as the clouds parted for several minutes. The photographs in this section of the blog reveal the irridescent, turquoise-blue of some of the larger icebergs. What a magic moment! Worth all the pummelling and plodding and energy needed to reach this spot! And we were there, 'on our twosome' to enjoy it.
Ken and I continue hiking along the shoreline behind the mountain, stopping frequently to look back at our playful mammal and then the hard yakka began because we looked up and realised that there was no obvious trail on the mountain any longer but the map showed that there was a trail (now covered in deep tundra growth) up, up, up the mountain and through a pass between another mountain. There were even bigger boulders on the backside and other side of the mountain but Ken was confident that he could tundra-bash his way up , over and through the pass. So that's what we did for the next 2 and a half hours. We rested on boulders to get our breath , drink water and to check on our whale's movements. Even when we were three quarters up the mountain and near the pass we could still hear the whale's breathing/ spouting. It was tough climbing up because the tundra was deep and it was exhausting concentrating on making sure each step was on solid 'ground' but hearing the whale sounds spurred us on. We are still amazed at the silence of the area behind the mountain and that this silence " echoed" the whale's sounds.
The final part of the hike was hard but once we had hiked through the pass and down the side of the mountain we could see the port of Nanatalik way in the distance and we knew that after nearly 5 hours on the trail around the second highest mountain on the island we were " going to make it back". Yes we were exhausted but also exhilarated by seeing a pristine area of icebergs and a whale " whooping it up ." As we came near the port we passed other passengers who had no idea of our experiences and when we said we'd seen a whale they were excited for us too. We passed a few locals as we dropped down into the port area and we leave you with a cute little Inuit baby enjoying a trip into town with her grandad.
Post note: arriving back at the ship, we trundled into our cabin, showered and ordered room service: hot soup and toast, in bed. It was the best meal we had had ALL day and we slept soundly all night.
