My East Greenland Expedition with HX on MS Fram

By Sarah Ong, Senior Expedition Advisor at Cruise Norway

I didn’t have to think twice when my friend Belinda invited me to join her on her voyage on MS Fram to Greenland. Thank you for the invitation, Belinda! An thank you HX Expeditions!

After spending time in Svalbard back in June and falling completely in love with the Arctic, I clearly hadn’t had enough of it yet. So, off I went on HX’s 15 Day Arctic Odyssey: Svalbard, Greenland and Iceland.

East Greenland (Photo by Sarah Ong)

My Arctic adventure was underway again as I found myself back in Longyearbyen.

This time, though, it felt completely different. It was much quieter than when I was there in June, and it really struck me how much the Arctic can change in just a few months. I spent some time exploring Longyearbyen again and even got to meet the lovely huskies at the Husky Café.

Then came embarkation day and our first stop was Ny-Ålesund, followed by a Zodiac cruise along the glaciers that evening. Afterwards, we had two sea days to make our way towards Northeast Greenland.

Ny Alesund (Photo by Sarah Ong)

When we finally arrived, Arctic weather had other plans for us. Thick fog meant our first planned landing had to be cancelled, but the team quickly filled the day with lectures and activities.

I’ll admit, I wasn’t feeling my best during the crossing. I was hit pretty badly by seasickness and spent much of the day confined to my cabin. I do want to give a special shoutout to the F&B manager, Rajeev and my friend Belinda. As Rajeev hadn’t seen me during meal times, he was concerned and kept asking Belinda if I was ok. Belinda, on the other hand, delivered food to my cabin.(Yay!)

East Greenland (photo by Sarah Ong)

We were now in Northeast Greenland, and on our first landing, we were greeted by one of East Greenland’s most iconic residents: musk oxen. From then on, it was a proper Arctic expedition for us, with a lot of wildlife and a lot of icebergs.

The Wildlife We Encountered

During the voyage, we saw Arctic foxes, Arctic hares, one lemming and musk oxen, while the ship also encountered humpback whales and fin whales. We were particularly lucky with one sighting before we even reached Greenland. At dinner, while sailing from Svalbard towards Northeast Greenland, we spotted a polar bear in the distance. Most of us immediately rushed out in the middle of dinner to catch a glimpse of it as soon as it was announced!

Ice, Ice and More Ice

Of course there were icebergs, it’s Greenland! You would argue that the icebergs we saw weren't the biggest, and certainly not as numerous as what you might see around Ilulissat or Antarctica. However, this was my first time seeing Greenland's icebergs in person, and I was in awe!

Picture by Sarah Ong

Seeing photos of an iceberg and actually cruising past or sitting there in a Zodiac, with one floating near you, are two very different things. The shapes, colours and scale are difficult to appreciate until you're actually there. I especially enjoyed one of our zodiac cruises in Eielson Glacier. We got to cruise quite close to the glaciers and it was a nice treat to see seals popping their heads out of the water, while another was basking on an ice floe.

Photo by Sarah Ong

Visiting Ittorqqortoormiit (Photo by Sarah Ong)

Ittoqqortoormiit is one of the most remote inhabited communities in the Western Hemisphere, home to around 350 people. We followed the usual shore landing routine, arriving by Zodiac. Once ashore, we split into groups, each with an expedition team member who gave us a small tour of the settlement. From there, we all made our way to the football field to watch a match between the crew and the local community. Very talented kids!

Favourite Highlight : Kayaking Among the Icebergs

Saving the best for last, one of the things I was particularly happy about on this voyage was finally getting the chance to kayak in the Arctic and near icebergs?! WOW!

Being right down at water level, with an iceberg so close by, was such a surreal experience. We also had really calm waters that day, so it felt incredibly peaceful, paddling through the water surrounded by ice and the Greenlandic landscape. I think this is one of those expedition activities that you don't fully appreciate until you're actually doing it.

I should mention that this was a beginner-friendly kayaking experience. PS, I'd recommend charging your phone before heading out on a kayak because I didn't, and mine eventually died during the excursion. I did manage to get a few photos before it gave up, but in hindsight, I think it was for the better. Once my phone died, I could just put it away and truly enjoy the experience without thinking about trying to capture everything.

If you’re considering Greenland or East Greenland, I’d say do it. It’s such a beautiful place, and I’d happily go back again. Maybe I just need to start planning my next Arctic adventure…

A quick look at the itinerary:

The voyage starts in Longyearbyen, with a visit to Ny-Ålesund before sailing across the Greenland Sea towards Northeast Greenland National Park. We spent a couple of days exploring the area before continuing to Ittoqqortoormiit and Scoresby Sund, then sailed across the Denmark Strait before disembarking in Reykjavík, Iceland.