Tuesday 2 September 2014

Day 10, 30.08, Alpefjord and Mestersvig

Waking up this moring we found our selves surrounded by high mountains, but due to references no one could imagine that these were more than 2000 meters high, some even close to 3000 meters. This is of course Alpefjord in Staunings Alper. The area is a mecca to climbers, there is also several unclimbed peaks for those interested in trying to conquer the wonders of geology. The aim for this morning was to get everyone into the tender-boats for a 30 min cruising along the glacier in the bottom of the fjord. It is actually two glaciers, the Gully gletcher and Sefstrøms gletcher draing parts og the Staunings alps. It was very impressive to sit in the small boats listening to the sparkeling glacier ice and have a look MV Fram in this enormous fjord.
During lunch we cruised out of the fjord only to be met with the impressive geology in Segelselskapets fjord, consisting of more than 500 my old colourfull marine sediments.
In the afternoon we dropped anchor at Mestersvig, Nyhavn. This is and old mining town from the 1950s’ and 60’, where one of our guides used to live as a small kid with the world largest nationalpark as his playground. Today Nyhavn is used by the yearly supply-ship to the Royal Danish Naval Guard and the Mestersvig airfield built in 1952. The station is manned by two men all year round, normally “retired” men from the Sirius patrol or Station Nord. Visits are rare, as we are the second and largest cruise-ship of the season.
Today we offered a kayak tour and a hiking trip to the airfield and the surrounding mountains and some good old stories from our “home-sick” guide ;0)

This is also our last stop as we leave the Nationalpark of NE-Greenland heading for the civilization in Scoresbysund…