Cruise to Canada's Arctic with Cruise North

THE NORTHWEST PASSAGE CRUISES TO CANADA'S ARCTIC WITH CRUISE NORTH


10 nights Departures in August 2009

Ships which operate this route:

Lyubov Orlova - 122 guests

Explore beyond the Northwest Passage to the south coast of Ellesmere Island, the most northerly island in the Canadian Arctic archipelago. In this land of true polar desert you will find mountainous coastlines capped by shining glaciers, impassive icebergs and a rich archaeological record of ancient Inuit habitation.

Itinerary

You will spend a week exploring the lands and inlets along and beyond this historic waterway. Along the way excursions will take place, although exactly where will be hard to predict, some of the places you may visit include:

Cruise North - The Northwest Passage route map

Prince Leopold Island
An important migratory bird sanctuary, the spectacular sandstone cliffs that characterize this island are the summer nesting home to thousands of thick-billed murres, northern fulmars and black-legged kittiwakes.
Beechey Island
First visited in 1845 by the British explorer Sir John Franklin, who chose this protected harbour for his first winter encampment with his two ships HMS Erebus and Terror. It was a tragic decision, as the ice failed to clear the following summer and the crew was forced to spend a second winter in the ice. Some did not survive, but most did and sailed free the following summer, but no record of their intentions – or any sign of the ships or crew themselves – has yet been found.
Port Leopold
The site of a former Hudson’s Bay Company trading post, it is also the place where the English explorer James Clark Ross wintered in 1848 during his search for the missing Franklin expedition.
Truelove Lowlands
This area of raised beaches on the north shore of Devon Island contains numerous ponds and rich vegetation that attract a variety of wildlife, including water fowl, Arctic hare and muskox. Used extensively by the Inuit for several thousand years, it also contains many ancient camp sites.
Grise Fiord
Canada’s most northerly community, Grise Fiord. The fiord itself (the village came later) was so named by the Norwegian explorer Otto Sverdrup, who charted this area from 1899 to 1903. Grise Fiord means “pig fiord” in Norwegian – it must have seemed a logical name, given that the many walrus in the area sounded so much like the grunting of pigs! Its Inuit name, Aujuittuq, means ‘place that never thaws’.
Dundas Harbour
Abandoned in 1951, the relic building and artefacts of this former RCMP post provide a fascinating glimpse into a bygone era, and a stark contrast to the nearby remains of ancient Thule-era stone and sod dwellings and meat caches.

Note: The itineraries and shore excursions are governed by weather, ice, tides and other conditions.

Departure Dates & Prices

Prices are per person sharing twin room for 10 nights. Single supplement available on request.

Departure dates	Price
27 Aug 09	Ł4605

Price Includes:
10 nights, 8 nights on cruise, 1 night before cruise at the Holiday Inn Montreal Airport, 1 night after cruise at the Delta Montreal
Price Excludes:
International flights, meals not listed, transfers in Montreal, gratuities and items of a personal nature.