Tanquary Fjord
Itinerary
Day 1-2
Embarkation
Your voyage begins in Ottawa, capital city of Canada. Arrive early to visit to the sites and national museums. The next morning, you'll fly to Resolute and by evening of day 2 you'll be aboard Kapitan Khlebnikov.
Day 3
You'll be engaged by presentations on Arctic wildlife, geology and history as you travel eastward through Lancaster Sound along the south coast of Devon Island. Keep an eye peeled for the elusive narwhal, inspiration for the legend of the unicorn. Take a stroll through an archaeological site of the ancient Thule people, who lived here over 1000 years ago.
Day 4-5
Take a Zodiac cruise to beautiful Coburg Island National Park, the nesting site of Thick-billed Murres, Black-legged Kittiwakes, and many more northern birds. Through Devon Island and onto Jones Sound, we follow Hell Gate, a narrow passage that has only been navigated successfully by a handful of vessels.
Day 6–9
However poetic the descriptions, you'll soon know one thing – no one has managed to put into words the epic beauty that is Tanquary Fjord. Gaze upon sweeping mountain valleys under huge Arctic skies. Luminous glaciers cascade down to clear blue waters. A miniature forest of soft tundra, home to thousands of species of plants and wildlife.
Day 10-11
Our next stop is Eureka Sound. Helicopter flights take us over an ancient petrified forest on Ellesmere Island's western coast. Stunning Axel Heiberg Island is next, and another helicopter ride to search for musk oxen, wolves and Arctic hare.
Day 12
There are many wonderful and exciting sites during this journey through Norwegian Bay and Belcher Channel. However, the experience of watching the 24,000 horsepower Kapitan Khlebnikov battle its way through some of the toughest ice in the world may be one of the most memorable. We then head south, through Penny Strait to Queens Channel, with plans to explore McDougall Sound seeking walrus and polar bears.
Day 13-14
The tip of Cornwallis Island offers opportunities to spot beluga, walrus and, upon crossing the Parry Channel, the bird cliffs of Prince Leopold Island. Our final landing is on Beechey Island to view the Franklin Memorial. You can feel the history surround you on this desolate coast, where Franklin and his men wintered in 1846-47 before disappearing.
Day 15-16
Your ending will come in luxury.
We'll sail back to Resolute Bay then fly to Ottawa for a final night at the Fairmont Chateau Laurier Hotel. Then you're on your way back home, filled with brilliant memories and thrilling stories that will stay with you forever.
