Greenland and Wild Labrador | Ocean Endeavour

Please make your own way to Toronto Airport for the early morning charter flight to Kangerlussuaq.

Kangerlussuaq is a former US Air Force base and Greenland’s primary flight hub. Here we will be bused along Greenland’s longest road—less than twenty kilometres—to the port. Zodiacs will be waiting to transfer us to the Ocean Endeavour.

Sondre Stromfjord is one of the longest fjords in the world and boasts 168 kilometres of superb scenery. You will begin your adventure by sailing down this dramatic fjord, crossing the Arctic Circle as you go.

West Greenland’s complex coastal waterways include glaciers, islands and fjords against a towering mountain backdrop. The waters are relatively warm here, due to the West Greenland Current and the sub-Arctic location. We’ll explore this sublime landscape by ship and by Zodiac.

Welcome to Nuuk, the capital of Greenland and one of the world’s northernmost capitals. The old harbour region of town includes many buildings dating from the Danish colonial days. The modern downtown core includes shopping, cafes, and restaurants—as well as public institutions with a European flair.

The Greenland National Museum is one of Nuuk’s many outstanding features; the world-famous Qilakitsoq mummies are housed here. The museum’s exhibits also offer in-depth information about colonial, Norse, and Inuit presence in Greenland—a must-see.

Sailing ever-westward, like the Vikings, we cross the Davis Strait—the mouth of the Northwest Passage. Narrower and shallower than Baffin Bay to the north, Davis Strait is a haven for marine mammals and seabirds. We’ll be on the watch!

Our presentation schedule will be a flurry of learning opportunities. We’ll immerse ourselves in the archaeology, history, and culture of Greenland, Nunavik, Nunatsiavut, Labrador, and Newfoundland.

Canada’s highest peaks east of the Rockies are found in Torngat Mountains National Park. Here, the Inuit of Nunatsiavut will be our guides in their spiritual homeland.

Polar bears, caribou, falcons, and eagles are among the species we hope to spot on land. We’ll also be on the lookout for marine mammals! We’ll spend our time on guided hikes, searching for wildlife, visiting archaeological sites, and Zodiac cruising.

This haunting site preserves a Moravian Mission station dating from the 1830s. The mission was abandoned in 1959, forcing the relocation of the Inuit who resided there. In 2005, Newfoundland & Labrador issued an apology to people affected by the relocations.

Former Hebron residents and their kin continue to visit the site, and to hunt and fish nearby. With their help, some of Hebron’s buildings are now being repurposed as a cultural interpretation centre.

The administrative capital of Nunatsiavut, Nain is the northernmost community in Labrador. A busy harbour in a gorgeous location is the centre of this bustling village. We'll visit the beautiful Moravian Church and the Nunatsiavut Building.

Labrador’s coast in this region is much more varied than you might expect. Here we find coastal barrens, high subarctic tundra, high boreal forest, mid-boreal forest, and string bog—as well as the Akami-Uapishkᵁ-KakKasuak-Mealy Mountains National Park Reserve.

L’Anse aux Meadows is the only authenticated Norse settlement in North America—a UNESCO World Heritage Site and National Historic site. The archaeological remains found here in 1960 date to approximately 1000 AD.

Amazingly, the location of the ruins was first established by a close reading of the Viking sagas. Today, a superb interpretive centre and reconstructions of the several Norse-style sod buildings make L’Anse aux Meadows a must-see for any visitor to Newfoundland.

The east coast of Newfoundland is known for the dozens of picturesque villages that dot its rocky shores. We’ll find harbour in one of these unique communities. We look forward to a characteristically warm Newfoundland welcome upon our arrival. Photographers will have their work cut out for them capturing the special charm of classic island communities and picturesque coastlines.

Sailing into the port of St. John’s has to be experienced to be believed. Signal Hill keeps watch as we take on our pilot and enter the world-famous Narrows. The charming houses of The Battery are always a hit with shutterbugs.

The bustling capital city of Newfoundland & Labrador makes a spectacular backdrop. High on the hill sits The Rooms, a cultural museum dedicated to more than five hundred years of history surrounding St. John’s harbour.