Remote Arctic / Ellesmere

Your Arctic expedition begins in Toronto. Explore this vibrant city on your own before
you spend the night enjoying the comforts and amenities of your designated hotel.

This morning, board your charter flight to Resolute, Nunavut. Upon arrival, you may
have a chance to check out this small hamlet on foot before being transferred to your
ship via Zodiac or helicopter (depending on ship location and weather conditions).

Cruising around the remote islands of the Canadian High Arctic aboard our fabulous
ship, the newest ship in our fleet, you’ll navigate the same icy inlets, channels and bays
that fascinated legendary explorers of long ago. Designed to give polar adventurers
unprecedented access to the hardest-to-reach places on the planet—and equipped with
two onboard twin-engine helicopters for unparalleled access to areas only Quark Expeditions can bring you—this one-of-a-kind ship will take you beyond the familiar in
polar exploration. Throughout your journey, your Expedition Team will keep an eye
toward immersing you in the best the Arctic has to offer, including reaching Canada’s
most northerly islands: Axel Heiberg Island and the rarely visited Ellesmere Island, at
the top of the world. 

Remember that no two polar voyages are alike, since each expedition presents new
opportunities and different weather and ice conditions. While this voyage has no fixed
itinerary, our objective is to visit as many of the incredible highlights the season has to
offer, using our extensive expertise to give you the best experience. Each day, your
highly skilled Expedition Team will read the conditions and choose the best course to
set, but despite their knowledge of these areas, each visit brings something new to
discover. That said, our expeditions will have some elements in common, including daily
Zodiac cruising, land excursions, a robust education program, a community visit and
wildlife viewing opportunities. And thanks to our onboard helicopters, you’ll also
discover the ultimate polar expedition experience: While polar landscapes are
spectacular from the sea and on land, the view from the air is uniquely stunning.
Conditions permitting, you’ll enjoy ultra-immersive activities like flightseeing (short
sightseeing flights around your ship and surrounding areas) and heli-landings (flying to
places we could not otherwise access for shore excursions), two breathtaking options
that are unique to Ultramarine and give you an awe-inspiring polar experience like no
other.

While this waterway is known to European cultures as the Northwest Passage, this area
has nurtured and sustained the Inuit and their predecessors who have called these
shores home for almost 5,000 years. Moving through these remote landscapes you will
be traveling through the ancestral homelands of this ancient culture, illuminated in
person by Inuit guides onboard and ashore. Nunavut is an Inuktitut word meaning “our
land” and the Nunavummiut (the people of Nunavut) are renowned for their incredible
resourcefulness, hospitality, good humor, and a deep knowledge of the land and
animals that has allowed them to thrive in the far north for millennia. 

Ultimately, your Expedition Team will keep its eye northward, hoping to follow in the
footsteps of the lucky few polar adventurers who have transited through the famous Hell
Gate to reach the top of the world, the spectacular Ellesmere Island. If conditions are
right, the soaring, ominous snow-capped peaks of this polar desert will come into focus
as we approach. The northernmost island in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago,
Ellesmere is one of the most remote places on the planet, a land of deep fjords, jagged
mountains and massive ice shelves. If we’re fortunate enough to reach here, you will be
among the few polar explorers to do so. 

One of this expedition’s objectives, weather and ice conditions allowing, is to visit the
famous fossil forest on Axel Heiberg Island, Canada’s second most northerly island.
Dating back more than 30 million years, the large mummified stumps were discovered
in 1985 after erosion swept them clean. The original forest that was here flourished, with
some trees reaching as high as 115 feet (35 meters) and growing for 500 to 1,000 years. Birders will want to have their binoculars and cameras at the ready, as the island
also affords opportunities for sightings of snow buntings, ptarmigans, jaegers and arctic
terns, among others.

Wildlife sightings are almost guaranteed, as many of the areas we hope to explore are
home to a surprising number of birds and mammals that thrive in this challenging
environment. You may see polar bears, muskoxen and several bird species, such as
gyrfalcons and dovekies (little auks). If you’re lucky, you may even spot the elusive
narwhal or arctic wolf, though sightings of these iconic creatures in the wild are rare,
even in these areas where we have the highest chances of encountering them. 

Coburg Island, for instance, is a wildlife reserve for such birds as snowy owls and
peregrine falcons, while the impressive vertical cliffs of Prince Leopold Island are dotted
with nesting seabirds like northern fulmars and black guillemots. The sheltered shores
and steep cliffs of Arctic Bay, a hamlet located off of Admiralty Inlet, provide an ideal
nesting habitat for various High Arctic birds such as snow geese, thick-billed murres
(Brünnich’s guillemots) and kittiwakes. The region has been occupied by Inuit and Thule
cultures for almost 5,000 years. This community is an ideal spot to go ashore and learn
more about the Inuit culture, sampling the local cuisine and mingling with artists,
perhaps picking up carvings or other handicrafts as a memento of your polar
adventure.  

Devon Island is another possible locale for wildlife encounters, as walrus, polar bears
and muskoxen inhabit the area, which is also the location of the remains of a Royal
Canadian Mounted Police outpost, established at Dundas Harbour in 1924 to curb
foreign whaling and other activities. Nearby is a small cemetery, one of Canada’s most
northerly, still maintained by the RCMP to this day. Another exciting excursion your
Expedition Team might offer, conditions permitting, is the opportunity to fly up to explore the Devon ice cap, one of the largest in the Canadian Arctic. History buffs will also be intrigued by the chance to visit an abandoned Hudson’s Bay Company trading post at Fort Ross, at the southern end of Somerset Island, and pay their respects to the ill-fated Franklin expedition of 1845–46 at the gravesite of three crew members on Beechey Island, one of Canada’s most significant Arctic exploration sites.

You may have the opportunity to cruise in a Zodiac along the face of an active glacier
near Croker Bay and possibly even witness the wonders of calving ice, at a safe distance. Listen closely for the steady crackle and deep roars as slabs of ice break off and crash into the water below. You’ll also want to be on the lookout for the walrus that are often seen in the area.

There is no shortage of natural beauty, wildlife and history in Canada’s High Arctic.
Each day, you’ll discover something new and inspiring, whether it is admiration of the
tundra flora to survive the extremely rugged environment, a rare bird species soaring
overhead, a polar bear on the hunt in its natural habitat, or the ancient remains of a
Thule dwelling, predecessors of the Inuit who live here today.

After disembarking in Resolute, you’ll be transferred to your charter flight to Toronto,
where you’ll spend the night at your included hotel.

Today, make your way to the airport to catch your homeward flights, or spend the day exploring this fascinating city.