15 
nightsDeparture: 2 August 2006
Ship: Kapitan Khlebnikov (Icebreaker)
Quark’s world-class icebreaker the Kapitan Khlebnikov makes it
possible to sail right around spectacular Baffin Island, the planet’s fifth-largest island and
the centerpiece of Canada’s Arctic. In seldom-explored waterways, you’ll encounter the rugged beauty of cliff-lined fjords while discovering a cultural history dating back more than 4,000 years – and join our specialists spotting polar bears, seals and other wildlife among the ice floes.
| Days 1 & 2 - Ottawa to Resolute | |
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Arrive in Ottawa and transfer independently for an overnight stay at the Fairmont Château Laurier, with opportunities to explore Canada’s historic capital. Next morning, fly above the Arctic Circle to Resolute and transfer to the Kapitan Khlebnikov, which sails in the evening. |
| Day 3 - Bylot Island & Eclipse Sound | |
| Our route follows the 19th-century explorers into Lancaster Sound, home to 26 bird species along with a dozen species of marine mammal. We reach the northwest coast of rugged Bylot Island, a vast migratory bird sanctuary that boasts one of the most diverse avian communities – including greater snow geese, snowy owls, peregrine falcons and gyrfalcons – above 70º north. We hope to tour the magnificent bird cliffs at Cape Hay by Zodiac. Later, we cruise the Navy Board Inlet south into beautiful Eclipse Sound. | |
| Days 4 to 6 - Northeast Coast of Baffin Island | |
| As we sail into deeply incised inlets such as Gibbs or Sam Fjords, the mountains of northeastern Baffin Island rise several thousand feet above the sea. Watch for narwhals and beluga whales in these nutrient-rich waters – and caribou can often be seen roaming the endless tundra. Expect also to see fantastically sculpted icebergs drifting west from Greenland. We then head south past snowcapped mountains to the Arctic Circle. As always, the Captain and your Expedition Team will respond flexibly to weather and ice conditions when deciding the route and daily schedules that fit our goals. | |
| Days 7 to 9 - Pangnirtung, Hudson Strait & Frobisher Bay | |
| We intend to sail across Cumberland Sound to Pangnirtung (pop. 1,200),
located on a scenic fjord near Auyuittuq National Park. Home to many artists, the
village is famed for its prints and beautifully woven tapestries. The landscapes here are breathtaking: towering cliffs, waterfalls, glaciers and distinctive flat-topped mountains overlooking flowering tundra. We continue along the coast into the Hudson Strait, with possible expedition stops on Edgell Island at the mouth of Frobisher Bay, as well as Diana Bay and Akpatok Island. In summer, the islands’ cliffs are nesting habitats for Arctic terns, razorbills, thick-billed murres, kittiwakes, black guillemots and Atlantic puffins – which in turn attracts polar bears to the area. |
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| Day 10 - Cape Dorset | |
| By afternoon we hope to arrive at Cape Dorset, a remote 2,000-year-old community rediscovered by early 20th-century explorers. Once a trading center for furs and sealskins, since the late 1950s Cape Dorset has gained renown as the Inuit art capital of the world. At the local Artist’ Co-op and in conversations with residents, you learn about the community’s history and cultural traditions, and the values that have helped these proud people survive in a seemingly impossible environment. | |
| Day 11 - Foxe Basin | |
| In this waterway between Baffin Island and the Melville Peninsula, plan time to watch the spectacle of the Kapitan Khlebnikov battling the Arctic ice pack. As we plow through huge ice floes, your Expedition Team will alert you to any marine mammals and seabirds drawn to these waters for a brief period – by rising temperatures, melting ice, perennial daylight and an explosion of food sources – before winter descends once again. | |
| Day 12 - Fury and Hecla Strait | |
| Only a very few vessels have successfully navigated through the narrow waterway of Fury and Hecla Strait, named for the ships from William Parry’s Baffin Island expedition of 1821–1823. Taking advantage of helicopter reconnaissance, your Captain will be able to constantly monitor conditions ahead as he plans the ideal route through the ice. As ever, our rate of progress and range of daily activities will vary according to the vagaries of the Arctic environment. | |
| Days 13 & 14 - Somerset Island & Prince Leopold Island | |
| Depending on our earlier progress, we hope to explore the tundra at Fort Ross, an abandoned Hudson’s Bay Company depot on Somerset Island. We approach the Bellot Strait, a very narrow channel leading to Point Zenith, the northernmost point on the North American continent. Often choked with heavy pack ice, the waterway is a likely place to spot polar bears or narwhals. Other expedition stops may include flat-topped Prince Leopold Island, known for its nesting seabirds, and Cunningham Inlet, a reserve around a shallow bay where beluga whales congregate during summer. | |
| Days 15 & 16 - Resolute to Ottawa | |
| We disembark the Kapitan Khlebnikov at Resolute Bay for our flight back to Ottawa and a final night at the Fairmont Château Laurier, continuing home independently after breakfast on Day 16. | |
| Prices per person | |
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| 2 August 06 | £8200 |
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