If I Were Going...

Stunning cliff face

Our afternoon stop was also a land-based outing, this time to Blomsterbugten, which is a lovely curved bay on Ymer Ø deep in Kejser Franz Joseph Fjord in Northeast Greenland National Park

With steep, rocky sides, landing requires some scouting

Ymer Ø is named after the Swedish geographical journal Ymer, which published many accounts of Swedish expeditions to Spitsbergen and Greenland. The journal, in turn, was named after the giant Ymir from Norse mythology.

Illustration: Viking Valhalla

The island lies on the southern side of the entrance of Kejser Franz Joseph Fjord, with the Antarctic Sound separating it from the Suess Land Peninsula. Ymer Ø 's northern half forms a peninsula named Gunnar Anderson Land having its narrow isthmus in the west. The fjord between the two halves of the island is named Dusen Fjord.

Ymer Ø; Map: Google Maps

Ymer Ø has an area of 940 square miles and its highest peak, Angelin Bjerg, reaches 6,233 feet.

Lots of craggy mountains and rocky hills

Blomsterbugten means "Flower Bay," because the area is known for colorful tundra and vibrant summer flowers. Of course, in mid-September, those flowers were long-gone.

Even a dusting of snow

But even with no flowers, Blomsterbugten was colorful, with orange/yellow tundra and lichen ...

More color: hikers in bright yellow jackets traversing the golden landscape

... and the most dramatically colored geological formations we saw on the trip.

Amazing rocks

A closer look shows some aqua-colored mineral deposits (most likely copper)

It was stunning as the ship approached and we began planning for a speedy Zodiac trip to shore.

The kayakers were getting ready, too

Muskoxen

But, that trip was delayed because right there on the beach that had been pegged for our landing were three Muskoxen.

Two females and a baby

A baby!

I have blogged about Muskoxen before when I saw them in Alaska, so I won't go into much detail. But, here's a little background ...

Our first wildlife sighting!

Known for its thick coat and the male's strong odor emitted during the seasonal rut to attract females, Muskoxen stand 4-5 feet high at the shoulder, with females measuring up to 6.6 feet in length and larger males up to 8.2 feet. Both sexes have long, curved horns. The male's horns grow from a plate that meets in the middle, covering the head to protect it during clashes with other males. The female's horn plate has a gap.

Thick coat and long horns

Adult Muskoxen range from 400 to 900 lbs. and calves weigh about 25 lbs. at birth. These are BIG animals that live entirely off the TINY arctic vegetation, specifically grasses, willow and dwarf birch. It is hard to imagine how they survive.

Female grazing

There are an estimated 15,000 to 27,000 Muskoxen in Greenland. They are native to the northern and northeastern parts, with large, thriving introduced populations in the west. Northeast Greenland National Park has about 40 percent of the world's population in its borders. So, these were in their homeland, where about 9,500 to12,500 live, The population is not endangered.

A juvenile

We stood on the bow, watching the still-pretty-far-away Muskoxen. We saw the three on the beach and then another female a bit farther up the hill.

Another one!

As we watched, the higher-up Muskoxen started down toward the beach. I suspect she issued an alarm to the three grazing below. Muskoxen are a major food source for Greenlanders, so I imagine the sight of a ship was enough of a threat to trigger them.

Protecting the herd

They turned and ran -- yes, ran -- straight up the extremely steep hill, disappearing about halfway up.

Big, but fast

And, amazingly surefooted

Then several reemerged and steadily walked to the top of the peak.

Way at the top

While the whole thing looked effortless, it was amazing how quickly they moved up a steep mountainside.

These five or six were all I saw, but one of the Expedition Team members said that they briefly saw about a dozen right around the corner.

A wildlife sighting!

Actually, we had two wildlife sightings. I got a new bird there, as well.

An Iceland Gull!

Because the Muskoxen were far away, I was worried that my photos would be crap. I was using my new Canon R7 and was extremely pleased with what I got.

Even that far away!

After the Muskoxen moved on, the Expedition Team scouted and established an alternate landing site a bit further from where we had first seen the two cows and the calf.

A landing site, free of Musoxen

To The Island

Then, off we went, running just a bit late.

Heading toward our landing site; Photo: Scotty Sinton

Let's go ashore

On this landing, we tried the Leisurely tour rather than Medium Slow, where we were partnered with Ian, the ship's historian.

Ian gives us a history lesson

We walked about, enjoying the striking scenery as the afternoon light grew increasingly golden.

These must be Chargers, enjoying the late-day light

Since we didn't hike, we did miss some pretty views and a couple of Arctic Hares.

We could look up to see people looking down

But, we had a lovely time visiting Blomsterbugten's tiny trapper's hut called Varghytten. It was built in 1929 and is still used by the Sirius Dog Sled Patrol.

Varghytten means Wolf Hut

An elite Danish naval unit, the Sirius Dog Sled Patrol conducts long-range reconnaissance patrolling and enforces Danish sovereignty in the Arctic wilderness of northern and eastern Greenland.

Sirius Dog Sled Patrol; Photo: Global Gaz

The Patrol consists of six dog sled teams for the duration of the year, each consisting of two men and 11 to 15 dogs. When traveling, each team carries 770 to 1,100 lbs. of supplies, depending on the distance to the next supply depot. There more than 50 depot huts scattered across the patrolled area that are supplied by small boats in the southern area and by aircraft in the north.

This is just one of the huts

The patrol area is from the west coast of Hall Land to Cape Biot north of Fleming Fjord. The flying distance between the two points is 1,300 miles, but Greenland's ragged coastline multiplies that to about 10,000 miles.

Passage is too rough without snow; Left: Sunday Guardian; Upper right: Sandesh

Patrols can last for four months, often without additional human contact. It can take up to four years for all patrol areas to be visited.

Not a lot of room in the hut

When the international court of the League of Nations granted Erik the Red's Land to Denmark, it ruled that the Danish had to assert its sovereignty. Initially, this presence was in the form of two fixed police stations. But, threats from World War II initiated formation of the Dog Sled Patrol in 1941.

The Patrol's discovery and the subsequent destruction of secret weather stations denied Germany critical weather information with significant implications for the Battle of the Atlantic and for air and land fighting in Europe, despite the enormous distance of Greenland from the main theatres of war.

Rugged and remote

During the war, one Patrol member was killed in action and two others were captured by German forces, but escaped and rejoined the Patrol.

Varghytten provides a magnificent view of the Teufelschloss ("Devil's Castle"), a prominent mountain of reddish rock with a lighter stripe extending diagonally across its face. It was named by the second German North Polar Expedition that first surveyed and partially explored the Kejser Franz Joseph Fjord in 1869-70.

Teufelschloss; Photo: Sandesh

We got a late start at Blomsterbugten, so the sky was darkening when all the hikers returned to the hill above our Zodiac launch.

The day was waning and our ship was waiting; Photo: Scotty Sinton

The Ocean Explorer set up a table on the rock and served Champagne and other drinks to fortify us for the ride back.

Well, that was nice; Photo: Scotty Sinton

A lovely day.

The weather was holding!

And, Muskoxen!

Blomsterbugten was the farthest north stop on our trip, at 73° 19.6' N. That's farther north than the top of Alaska, but about 3° south of our most northerly point when we went to Svalbard.

So, an iceberg was appropriate

The next post will cover more ice.

More glaciers (Greenland seems to have an unlimited supply)

Trip dates September 5 – 28, 2025

Maria Ø

I mentioned earlier that Ella Ø lies at the confluence of the Kejser Franz Joseph and King Oscar Fjord Systems. Ella is fairly large at 55 square miles and about 37 miles of coastline.

Just south of Ella Ø is Maria Ø, a remote, uninhabited island within the Northeast Greenland National Park, specifically at the intersection of Antarctic Sound, Kempe Fjord and Kong Oscar Fjord.

Our approach

Maria Ø is known for its dramatic Arctic scenery, featuring high cliffs, deep fjords and nearby glaciers, and is a stop on many polar expedition cruises.

A stop for us, too; Photo: Fellow traveler

The island is named after the daughter of Swedish Explorer Alfred Gabriel Nathorst, whose 1899 expedition discovered the connection between Kejser Franz Joseph and Kong Oscar.

Our ship in Maria's bay

Maria Ø has remains of a decommissioned summer research station and of a former Nazi weather outpost. The Nazis used several Arctic outposts to gather weather data to support military operations in Europe during World War II.

Remote and tricky to reach

We landed on a broad, flat scree-covered beach and walked up a rise that looked as though it had been purposefully terraced.

Landing spot

The broad bands in the rock, called marine terraces, were caused by post-glacial isostatic rebound. That's when land slowly rises after being relieved of the immense weight of glaciers and is then eroded by fluctuating sea levels.

As the land lifts in stages, ancient shorelines are exposed as distinct, elevated steps. Then, wave action further shapes them.

Gently rolling waves of scree

These stepped landscapes are covered with fine gravel or sand, boulders and "patterned ground" caused by Arctic freezing/thawing cycles. The marine terraces were frequently used by Paleo-Eskimo populations for settlements, with archaeological sites often found on the elevated beach ridges.

While much of the surface was fine gravel, the rolling hills were also covered with a willow/aspen forest, with a twist ...

This forest is only about an inch tall

A feature of the landscape was an ice-edged lake, beautifully reflecting the mountain peaks as the sun rose in the distance.

Unlike anything else we saw in Greenland

The bay we anchored in was brilliant blue and generally ice free, except for a couple of stranded icebergs.

There was little ice except a few big bergs

Some large icebergs protrude too deep under the surface and snag on shallow bay bottoms.

They can then sit for months until they are washed free or melt enough to float free

We took the Medium Slow narrated hike at Maria Ø, walking past the lake and then up some rock-covered hills to a low vista point above. Other hiking groups spread out so that we could see tiny dots of yellow-clad hikers across the broad plain and on mountains above us.

Such a broad vista that it is easy to miss all the hikers in this shot

The region is known for sightings of Muskoxen, Polar Bears and various bird species. Although we saw no wildlife (not even any birds), we saw ample evidence that some had been there, including ...

Muskox tracks and ...

Polar Bear tracks and fur

There was a debate among guides about how recent the animals had been there; some thought that morning, some thought last season, positing that snow had covered and protected the prints. From the way they looked, I think the same morning made more sense.

We also saw some remnants of human habitation, including ...