Eqi Glacier
A calving glacier front north of Ilulissat, watched from a camp on the opposite shore.
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The Eqip Sermia glacier reaches the sea about eighty kilometres north of Ilulissat, presenting a calving front several kilometres wide and around fifty metres high above the water, and it calves frequently enough that watching it for an hour usually produces something. A camp on the shore opposite, established where Paul-Émile Victor ran his expeditions in the 1940s, allows overnight stays. Boats from Ilulissat take four to five hours each way.
What you actually see
- The calving front - a wall several kilometres wide and around fifty metres high.
- The frequent calving - ice falling often enough to be seen within an hour.
- The shore camp - the accommodation on the opposite side of the bay.
- The Victor connection - the site of the French expeditions of the 1940s.
When to go
June to September is the boat season. Ice conditions can prevent approach. The glacier calves year round but access does not.
Honest expectations
The boat trip is four to five hours each way, which makes a day trip very long. Ice can prevent the boat approaching the front. The camp is basic and expensive.
Nearby
Oqaatsut is south, and Ilulissat is beyond it.
What to pack for Eqi Glacier
Chosen from what this place is for. Tap a kit for the full checklist.
Opening times, ticket prices and seasonal closures change - check the official source before you go: official site.