Arctic Greenland - Tasiusaq

 Going south along the Greenland west coast, we passed by more giant icebergs before we come to Tasiusaq, a place representative of the diverse terrain of northwestern Greenland.  The coastline is rocky and slopes up to high peaks.  Where we landed is tundra, with a steep climb up to a lake with vistas of mountains in the distance and on the side.  

It's a beautiful place for a hike at our own pace - perfect for JOMO - the Joy of Missing Out, an acronym coined on this trip where after that first frantic scramble to see the stromatolites in Port Epworth, we were reminded that we don't have to see everything there is to see.  Not clambering up steep slopes on a timed Advanced hike, but enjoying the easy hike and the beautiful flowers, admiring the environment at our own pace and level. At the other end, there is FOMO - the Fear of Missing Out and the accompanying anxiety.  As the days passed, more and more people joined the JOMO group.  

This stop turned out to be the best hike on the entire trip for me - blessed by gorgeous weather, hiking through golden fall tundra, with flowers still in bloom, discovering plants never seen before, taking photos of the landscape, a little bit of clambering without hurting myself and enjoying the awe-inspiring vistas that come up with every turn.  Hope you enjoy the landscape as much as I did.

Giant icebergs we encountered on the way down the Greenland coast

The entrance to Tasiusaq is through a narrow inlet creating a very sheltered bay

Different kinds of rocks on the side

This shows you the inlet with its steep rocky slopes on the side and where we landed

A steep climb up from where we landed

Lycopodium

Purple Mountain Heather

the anticipation of the vistas at the top made the climb much easier, not to mention the flowers on the way

A stream and waterfall on our way up

Gilled mushroom

Diseased blueberry

Love those rocks!

Voilà! The view!  We walked all the way around to the other side of the lake until we hit the other lake in front of the tall mountains.

Lots of flowers on the tundra still and we were lucky to have Carole Mallory there to name all those plants for us!

See how the perspective changed as we approached the mountain

Suzie, our Inuit expedition team member posed for us in costume

The hike back yielded yet more different perspectives

Another iceberg with the rocks as a backdrop on our way out

Back on the ship, there was time for some brave passengers to do their polar dip