Nine Fascinating Points of Interest on Into the Northwest Passage

Along the south end of King William Island is the crux of the Northwest Passage, where the straits are shallow but the past runs deep. Squeak past bleak headlands and islands where Franklin’s men fell in their tracks. Most eerie of all, sail near the graveyards of the Arctic’s most infamous shipwrecks, the Erebus and Terror. Did they drift here? Were they sailed? Are there photographs, journals, or bodies aboard? Learn about the ongoing investigations and marvel at the mysteries of that most tragic expedition.

The biggest town in the High Arctic of Canada is also—we would argue—one of its most beautifully located. Mittimatalik, also known as Pond Inlet, nestles along whale-laden Eclipse Sound, peering toward the peaks and glaciers of Sirmilik National Park. For its 1,500 or so Inuit residents, this community is a cultural haven. Tour around town with warm local guides, hear (and likely learn a bit of) the Inuktitut language, witness a cultural extravaganza of Inuit sports and song, and purchase unique local carvings and craftworks.

With shattered shale plains, eroding bluffs, and little greenery, Beechey Island appears utterly sterile. But to history buffs, it’s hallowed ground. Here, three mariners with the lost Franklin expedition were interred. For 170 years—until the recent discovery of Franklin’s ships—their graves were the prime monument to that tragic, mysterious voyage. Pay respects to the trio, explore artefacts left by Franklin searchers, and marvel at what it was like for Englishmen to live and die here, so distant from the only world they knew.

Ilulissat means “icebergs.” The name says it all. Beside this renowned town of 4,700 people is Sermeq Kujalleq (Jakobshavn Glacier), the busiest glacier in the Northern Hemisphere, spewing 20 billion tonnes of ice per year into the local waterfront. Appropriately, this is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, not to mention Greenland’s top tourist attraction. Tour amongst the skyscraping bergs (often accompanied by humpback whales!), peruse the local museums and shops (sealskin chic!), and dine on distinctive Greenlandic fare (muskox burgers anyone?).

Overlaying much of the Northwest Passage is Tallurutiup Imanga, a landmark marine sanctuary established through a pact between Inuit and Canada. Sail and Zodiac through this natural and cultural seascape, witnessing ecological wonders. Here, the greatest Arctic whales, bus-sized bowheads, skim for plankton—while belugas and narwhal gobble cod in the fjords. On sea cliffs, murres and guillemots nest by the countless thousands. And on the drifting ice floes? Seals and the white bears that love to feed on them.

Sailing down the legendary Kangerlussuaq Fjord (Søndre Strømfjord) is a true polar pleasure. A whopping 190 kilometres long but just two kilometres wide, this intimate seaway is flanked by countless frosted peaks and glaciers and straddles the Arctic Circle. The rest of Greenland’s west coast is no less majestic—think icebergs, jagged isles, and misty summits. Explore this glittering land and seascape by ship, Zodiac, or on shore. Keep your eyes peeled for whales and make sure your camera has a spare memory card, because you might just fill it up!

Devon Island, the world’s largest uninhabited island, makes up for what it lacks in people with its ample ice—4,000 gigatons of the stuff, forming an ice cap almost a kilometre deep and sending glaciers churning down to the sea. By ship and Zodiac, explore the faces of these tidewater glaciers, while watching for the calving of house-sized icebergs, weaving amongst iridescent blue “bergy bits,” and marvelling at the diversity of wildlife—including greedily feeding seabirds and, often, polar bears, beluga, and narwhal.

A century ago the Arctic was disputed territory. Mounties and Inuit special constables were thus sent to Devon Island to fly Canada’s flag, make sovereignty patrols, and staff a remote station at Dundas Harbour. After the Mounties left, this was the site of the first Arctic relocation, when Inuit families were infamously moved to bolster Canada’s claims to the Far North. Tour the station’s eerie structures, learn about the hardships here, and take in the tundra’s local wildlife, which often includes foxes, muskoxen, and walruses.

For at least a millennium, this shivering sea has united Europe and Arctic North America. Inuit travel here, as did Vikings, Scottish whalers, explorers like Franklin and Amundsen, and more. On the outer decks, keep your eyes peeled for pilot and sperm whales, seabirds, and fantastical icebergs.