Ski Touring in the Arctic

Skiing in Greenland had long been an exotic dream of mine. With its scenery and fjords filled with majestic peaks, the location is an unspoiled wilderness right on our doorstep. Additionally, every year the mountains are sprayed all the way down to the waterline with copious amounts of the finest snow you can imagine, also making the region a veritable mecca for backcountry skiers. We decided to have a closer examination at the area using a combination of boat, tent, skins and leg power and traveled to the ice-covered island to find the best skiing that Northern Europe has to offer. Our skipper carefully navigates through the floating ice.

With the engine sending smoke into the cold afternoon air, we slowly push through 500 meters of increasingly thick ice. Two hours after departing Maniitsoq, we finally reach our destination and find an ice-free bay to go ashore. "See you in eight days!", is the last thing we hear before the little boat leaves us behind. We made our way to Greenland by air via Copenhagen to Kangerlussuaq and Maniitsoq, quickly gathered supplies for a week's stay and have now made the final 40 nautical miles by boat. After setting up camp in constant snowfall, we take a two-hour reconnaissance trip to find a route up to the peninsula's glaciers and make the first powder turns down to camp as night falls. We have dinner and make plans for tomorrow.

Anxious to beat the two helicopters operating in the area, we agree on an early start to stand on our first peak by 9 am. After a short night, we leave camp at 5 am. The snowfall has stopped, and the sun begins to burn away the morning clouds. Our mood is rising. Slowly, the fantastic landscape reveals around us. Countless 1,500-meter peaks, with the dark waters of the North Atlantic in the background. After four hours of skinning through 20 centimeters of powder, we reach our first summit and lose our breath as we gaze at the surroundings. The area around Evighedsfjord features more skiable peaks than the Alps of France, Switzerland and Austria combined.

There are no valleys or other barriers between the mountains, and the peaks sit so close together that one could throw a rock from one to another. Between them, powder awaits in a wide range of terrain from vast snow fields to narrow couloirs. No need to worry about the helicopters; you'd need a lifetime of heli-skiing to cover all the lines we can identify just from our vantage point. We relax and focus on what we came for: pointing our skis downhill and skiing the coolest lines the area has to offer. We ski three peaks and about 2,500 vertical the first day in close-to-perfect powder conditions before we cruise back to camp. The environment is impressive, with large glaciers sometimes offering the same kind of fun skiing as the peaks around them.

We continue to link up great runs with 500 to 1,200 meters each, in eight to ten-hour day trips from camp, without ever having to repeat one single run. Stable sub-zero temperatures and the lack of strong winds provide safe, light and inviting snow conditions. After a rest day with more snowfall, we head east along the coast to meet the Greenland ice sheet. Five kilometers of touring through narrow valleys brings us to the point where the ice sheet forms the link between mainland and peninsula. The massive glacier is pushed out towards our peninsula and forms a T-junction before crashing into a vast mountain massif, turning 90 degrees in either direction and heading down towards the fjords.

The glacier abruptly drops 100 meters into the ocean in front of us, with a few icebergs serving as signs of the constant calving. One of the most spectacular runs of our lives takes us from our lookout point 800 meters above sea level down to the beach where crystal clear blocks of ice have stranded on their journey out to sea. We admire the view, eat lunch and wash it down with pure glacier water. The fact that the oldest parts of the Greenland ice sheet have been dated back 110,000 years makes us wonder about the age of the water. It is impossible not to be enchanted by Greenland's scenery. The landscape reminds us of Norway's fjords – but on steroids. Everything is big, but not threatening, rather inviting and welcoming.

Thanks to the Danish state, basic infrastructure has been installed in some communities. About 56,000 inhabitants live scattered along the west and east coasts of the island. The villages are beautiful, with colorful houses in varying shades of red, blue, green and yellow. Seal, walrus and whale species such as humpbacks, minks, and belugas are just a few examples of animals often seen in the area. We end our last day in the Evighedsfjord by crossing the peninsula and getting a fantastic spring snow run down a 40-degree glacier that stretches all the way to the northern shore. The first day's powder has turned into a solid base with yesterday's fresh snow added on top.

We create gigantic waves of spray as we ski the long and steep slopes down to the sea. The north side of the island, in contrast to our campsite, offers direct access to a couple of steep mountain sides with snow-covered rock pillows forming an unbelievable playground. We discover our new favorite run, which also resembles the perfect access point to the northern shore. This is where we shall pitch our tents the next time we visit the peninsula. Happy with our week, we pack up our gear for the boat trip back to Maniitsoq. The next day, we board our flight and leave Greenland for the time being, determined not to wait too long before we return to this incredible land.