National Geographic Endurance navigated from Qaqortoq to Prins Christian Sund at the south end of Greenland. Prins Christian Sund separates the Greenland mainland from Sammisoq and other islands in the south Greenland archipelago. It was named after King Christian VIII of Denmark.
Arriving at Prins Christian Sund at approximately 05:00, many guests joined the bridge team to enjoy the dramatic scenery. Our navigation took us through a complex fjord system consisting of steep-sided mountains, tall waterfalls, and tidewater and valley glaciers. Prins Christian Sund contains many “hanging valleys” — post-glacial features formed when former valley side glaciers intersected with the much larger glaciers that occupied today’s fjords.These provide abrupt overhangs that give rise to such impressive waterfalls.
After leaving Prins Christian Sund, National Geographic Endurance set course for Isafjordur, Iceland. We encountered some moderate-to-rough conditions in the Denmark Strait, but this did not prevent us from enjoying three interesting and informative presentations during the day. Chris Rainier presented “Cultures on the Edge,” followed by Doug Gould’s “Photography Techniques for Smartphones.” Finally, “Of Terror and Hell” was presented by Joseph Frey, in which he described the search for the Franklin expedition.
