WARNING:  This blog contains MANY photos of scenery, ice flows and ice bergs (plus a few seals – but only at the very end).

Today was strictly a scenic day.  We entered Prins Christian Sund at about 4:30 am (we missed it).  We woke up at quarter to 7, looked out the window and saw sheer cliffs rising up out of the water.  We dressed quickly and went to the bow deck, which the Captain had opened to passengers for the day.  The access to the bow deck is behind the stage in the showroom and only crew is usually permitted.

Due to the chilly temperature there was coffee and hot chocolate available.  We spent the next two hours watching the absolutely incredible scenery go by.  We were travelling VERY slowly and navigating past small, medium and very large icebergs.

    The Captain cruised into the Sund as far as a dead-end channel where a very remote village of 50-130 people live and provide guided fishing tours.  You could just see the tops of the roofs behind the rocks. At the end of the channel we did a slow turn around and sailed back to a fork in the Sund and headed out to sea.

If you look closely you can just make out the roofs behind the rock outcropping near the water.

We went to the Lido for breakfast and returned to the bow deck for the rest of the morning.  Mid-morning the crew brought hot Dutch Pea Soup out to warm everyone up again.  The day was glorious; beautiful sunshine with a few scattered clouds and not too cold, considering we were on the bow heading into the wind and sailing over frigid water
We were in the middle of know where when in the space of 15 minutes or so three different motor boats went speeding by. They must have come from or had gone to the little village I guess.

I love the blue-green sheen of the underwater ice.
I finally forced myself to leave the deck and go to the cabin.  I could have stayed all day without a break but I had taken so many photos I decided enough was enough.  In the cabin I worked on my blog from the last couple of days and uploaded the 205 photos I had taken today.

I think this butterfly must have come on board in Boston.  It was nestled on a window ledge near the Lido pool.  I don’t think it would want to go outside.

Just before lunch we entered the ice floe that drifts out to sea every summer with the melt and calving of the icebergs.  After we ate and visited for a while with our cruise friends Bill and Lynn we went back to the bow deck and watched the ship inch its way amongst the thousands and thousands of pieces of ice.  The tallest piece was estimated to be 275’ high.  The variety of shapes and wind-carved detailing on the ice kept us on the deck until time for dinner.

This ice berg had a cavern that the water would blow out of even though the seas were calm.   A swan

This berg would sink almost to the water line then rise up again – probably 25′ or higher. We had seen a few seals swimming in the pools of various ice bergs during the afternoon but during dinner we passed a couple of low flat ice sheets that were popular resting places for seals.  I guess once they have finished fishing for the day they crawl onto a piece of ice and have a nap.

We sailed out of the ice floe just as we concluded dinner and headed for open water. We have a sea day tomorrow before getting to Reykjavik, Iceland where we will be docked for two days.