Norris Niman/Courtesy of Visit Greeland
My eyes played tricks on me in the dark.
I watched as an iceberg glided by on the water.
The mountains were wreathed in a spectral fog in the moonlight.
The aurora borealis over Kulusuk, a village in Greenland.Credit:Norris Niman/Courtesy of Visit Greeland
I walked around the camps perimeter, weaving between our four fluorescent-orange tents, all my senses tuned in.
I was on a new land-based expedition with Hinoki Travels, an ecotourism company.
Kulusuk is on an island of the same name, just below the Arctic Circle.
Photographing a glacier from inside an ice cave.Norris Niman/Courtesy of Visit Greeland
Less than 5,000 visitors land in Kulusuk every year by plane.
I woke to Kulusuks sled dogs howling in the dawn.
Outside my window, houses appeared to glow in the violet light.
A guest with Hinoki Travels painting a scene from the day’s journey.Kenny Karpov
We were guided by Spenceley and a Tunumiit hunter, Jokum Heimer Mikaelsen, who also goes by Jukku.
We skirted the aquamarine halo of an iceberg.
Kayaking was invented here!
Jokum Heimer Mikaelsen, a Tunumiit guide, performing a traditional song.Kenny Karpov
bellowed Spenceley up ahead.
Lets make our way over there, Spenceley said, pointing his chin to our far left.
See if we can get some big whale action.
Preparing dinner at camp.Kenny Karpov
Our kayaks bobbed precariously.
Not far away, the elegant curve of a humpback broke through the surface.
Our group rafted up, holding the sides of one anothers kayaks for stability.
Kayaking on Tunu Sound.Kenny Karpov
Another whale appeared, misting the air with its breath.
Another guest, Paul Piong, lingered in the cold, painting a watercolor of the scene.
I retreated to my tent, knowing I would be back up at 5 a.m. for my bear-watch shift.
I emerged just as the first light was coaxing the world out of darkness.
Spenceley looked around distractedly, wide-eyed.
This moulin marked the entrance to an ice cave.
A cave collapsed on a group of tourists in Iceland a few days ago, Spenceley told us.
Once we were standing upright, it seemed like we had stepped inside a dazzling jewel.
We found no trails, no sheltering trees.
The only trace of humanity was a discarded bullet casing on the ground.
One night, we savored a dinner of pan-fried fresh-caught cod.
I have a surprise, said Jukku, who had remained a quiet yet encouraging presence throughout the trip.
That night, the northern lights rippled like green fire across the sky.
It was cheerful and warm inside.
But the cold of the Arctic waters, of the ancient blue ice, stayed with me for weeks.
Seven-night Interdependence: East Greenland itinerary withHinoki Travelsfrom $6,750 per person.
