East Greenland

Sea kayaking in East Greenland (Central East, not including Scoresbysund) is high arctic paddling.

Sea temperature is around freezing and during most of the summer there is a lot of pack ice in all fjords.

Access to the area is through Reykjavik, Iceland and the airport is at Kulusuk, in the Ammassalik fjord system.

The main town is Tasiilaq, with some 3000-3500 inhabitants. In addition there are 5 other small villages. The weather is generally stable but cool.

Paddling conditions are best inside the fjord systems, depending on ice conditions. A few overseas tour operators offer trips to the area and an expedition here should not be taken lightly.

No local kayaks area available for hire and it is best to bring all supplies along though the shops at Tasiilaq are reasonably well stocked in summer.

Flights between Reykjavik and Kulusuk are 6 days a week in summer and take 2 hours.

Public transport is by helicopter only but local boats can be chartered.

Maps area easily available on the internet, good ones are SAGA maps. Charts are harder to come by and pretty useless.

Risk from polar bear is low, but present and if you are paddling early in the season (before end of July) you might want to hire a riffle locally.

Other wildlife may include walrus, seals and fox. Few birds are seen in Ammassalik fjord.

Official travel information is available at http://www.greenland.com