Over the years of my travels, I’ve learned that all bad things come with good things, and usually more than one good thing. When Charlotte and I were going back to Nuuk via Kangerlussuaq from our amazing trip to Ilulissat, our flight to Nuuk from Kangerlussuaq was delayed more than three hours, meaning that we would miss two hours of Greenlandic class. We had timed it perfectly, so we could make it to the university with one hour to spare before class, but things didn’t go quite as planned.
Instead of spending two hours learning new Greenlandic words and songs, we had five hours in the village of Kangerlussuaq, where the biggest airport in Greenland is located. I spent four hours exploring the village on a stopover when I first moved to Greenland on September 1st, but this time Charlotte and I wanted to do a hike – despite the fact that we were still tired from the hike we had done the same morning in Ilulissat.
When we arrived in Kangerlussuaq at 3 PM, we immediately went to a small craft shop outside the airport, where I had fallen in love with a Tuttupit (tugtupite) necklace last time I was there. Tuttupit is a rare red/pink mineral that can only be found in Narsaq in the south of Greenland and on the Kola Peninsula in Russia, so it’s really unique. I had been thinking about it ever since, and since my grandmother offered to buy it for me for Christmas, I couldn’t say no despite the expensive 600 DKK price tag. I was so happy when I finally got the beautiful gemstone in my hand!
It’s the second one from the right!
Afterwards, it was time to head to Lake Ferguson (Tasersuatsiaq in Greenlandic), a lake located three km southeast of Kangerlussuaq. It’s supposed to take around 1,5 hours to hike there each way. We decided to go there as we wanted to experience the nature surrounding the village, and also because it was convenient with the amount of time we had available.
To get to the lake, we walked along a paved road, so it didn’t really feel like a hike, but still it was hard considering our tired legs and the fact that we were carrying our heavy backpacks. And the walk to the lake was mostly uphill, which made it even worse!
The nature around Kangerlussuaq is quite unique in Greenland, since it’s the only inland village in the country. We really hoped we would see musk oxen on the hike – or even a polar bear – but we didn’t get that lucky. I think we would have to go for a longer off-road hike in order to see wildlife.
1,5 hours after we left the airport, we arrived at the lake, exhausted, but happy. The lake was serene and beautiful. It looked so calm surrounded by high mountains that were inviting us for a hike, but sadly there was no time to do so.
The lake is home to the world’s northernmost rowing club and a restaurant, which unfortunately was closed that day. It would be cool to come back in the summer to try rowing in such an amazing location!
We sat down for a bit by the lake, and then it was time to head back to the airport, so we could catch our late flight back to Nuuk. The walk back was so painful, but thankfully the setting sun eased it a little. It was beautiful to watch the sun go down and paint the sky pink and orange while walking towards the tiny village with the large airport.
But I can’t even describe how happy I was when we finally got back to the airport. Finally we could sit down and rest our exhausted legs! The trip to Ilulissat and our surprise long stopover in Kangerlussuaq was worth every effort, but I must admit that it was tough. After roughly counting our walked kilometers, Charlotte and I came to the conclusion that we had walked 60-70 kilometers during those six days of travel, 20 of which were on that last day. Well done us!
My second time in Kangerlussuaq had come to an end, but I still want more. I would love to go back to do some tours in the area, to drive to the ice sheet and hopefully spot some musk oxen and reindeer. I don’t think I’ll have the chance to come back this time around, but since it’s the main port to everywhere else in Greenland, I’m sure I’ll meet again with Kangerlussuaq someday.
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