APRIL 2016 http://www.yachtingmonthly.com 45ADVENTURE
aghast at the vast quantities of vodka
consumed by some of my crew. ‘It was very
weak stuff,’ they told me. In spite of some
language difficulties it was a convivial and
pleasant evening. Then, when we returned
to Paamiut after exploring a nearby fjord,
there was Nomad with a young Austrian
couple just in from Labrador, with news of
old friends from the North West Passage in
Vagabondelle, whilst Empiricus, also old
friends from the North West Passage, were
pursuing us south having wintered the boat
in Aasiaat. Generally all this traffic allowed
us to meet new and lovely people, although
there was one large Swiss boat moored
behind us in Nuuk that played loud music
through their deck speakers till 0300.
We left the crowds of Paamiut behind
for the large, isolated island of Nunarssuit.
Heading out through the inner passage, wepassed a hurricane hole we had previously
found, down a short fjord with a right-
angled offshoot, protected from all winds.
Ahead of us lay 100 miles of motoring, no
wind and thick Greenlandic fog.
We made landfall at Kap Desolation and
found a good anchorage in the north-west
corner of a protected channel between the
cliff of Kap Thorvaldsen and the enclosing
line of islands at its foot. That the numerous
icebergs which tend to ground in this area
had found it difficult to get in was an added
bonus. We strengthened our position with
a line ashore. With excellent hiking and
potential for climbing all round, the lads
took on a couple of new routes on a wall
round the back of Kap Thorvaldsen, and
we continued to investigate and record a
number of pleasing anchorages on
the island. There aren’t many placesalso spent a pleasant time with fellow
cruising yachts Arctic Monkey and Suilven
anchored in Itissoq fjord below, where
the water was so clear you could choose
which fish you wanted to catch. It can be
complicated taking on water in Nuuk,
so we also filled our tank from the clear,
chuckling mountain stream ashore.
Each discovery of a new anchorage
or sheltered bay was recorded for the
Arctic Pilot, and old anchorages were
checked. One of the best we found in these
fjords was at Qarasuk, the site of an old
settlement. The dual outlying islands of
Qeqertaq also formed a protective line
for a number of anchorages, sheltered from
all directions. In fact, Dodo’s Delight
rode out strong southerly winds for
several hours anchored here in sand
or silt in the bay on the north side of
the eastern island.
It was well past midsummer now
and darkness was returning. Careful
pilotage was required south of Nuuk
as we motored through islands
and rocks in darkness towards the
next glacial fjord with promise of
climbing possibilities. Preferring to
continue in daylight, we anchored
offshore just short of a fjord. It was
a moderate anchorage, but on our
way back in daylight, we found we
had missed a perfect sandy bay with
a line of huge sand dunes along the shore,
left by ancient glacial outflows. If the wind
was onshore this side, we could go round
the headland of Marraq and anchor in sand
on the other side with the dunes above.
The passage from Nuuk to Paamiut
forced us out into open water once more.
The weather was varied, and difficult. We
made our way into Paamiut in a strong
following wind and a boisterous sea.
Paamiut is not my favourite settlement,
but it does have a convenient long hose
from the jetty for filling with diesel. I used
to be able to say, half humorously, ‘If you
see another sailing boat in Greenland, it’s
been a busy summer’. Not any more. In
addition to Arctic Monkey and Suilven,
whom we had already met up with, a Polish
boat Lady Dana moored up alongside
and kindly asked us aboard. I was slightlyPHOTO: MARTIN DOBLE
PHOTO: ROB BEDDOWSailing and climbing is a great combinationMark on top of
Shark’s Fin after a
successful climbApproaching an anchorage in the Arctic requires careful judgement The thermal springs in Qaqortoq were the perfect place to unwind