Greenland’s icy landscape shifts day by day and moment to moment. What will it look like when you visit? ©Candice Gaukel Andrews
With hundreds of staggeringly beautiful, ice-choked fjords, snowcapped summits, rushing waterfalls and flowing glaciers, Greenland is a paradise for cold-place fans, such as myself. And, if you seek remote and unpopulated corners, Greenland satisfies on that count, too. The entire 836,330-square-mile country has just 75 miles of roads and a population of approximately only 56,400 people.
But Greenland is changing fast. Last summer, according to NASA researchers, Greenland’s surface ice cover melted over a larger area than at any time in more than 30 years of satellite observations. Boats routinely haul in fishing quotas faster in bays that are thawing sooner, while the nation’s traditional villages are thinning out as young people look for opportunities elsewhere.
More than anything, though, Greenland’s ice changes, day by day and sometimes even moment to moment. In September of this year, I spent several days among the country’s icebergs and glaciers, photographing a landscape that I knew would exist only for the time I was there. If you traveled to Greenland today, you’d see a different world of ice than I did. And that, I think, is what will keep calling me back.
So, take a look at the Greenland I saw just a few weeks ago. Then, imagine what it will look like when you visit.
Here’s to finding your true places and natural habitats,
Candy
©Candice Gaukel Andrews
©Candice Gaukel Andrews
©Candice Gaukel Andrews
©Candice Gaukel Andrews
©Candice Gaukel Andrews
©Candice Gaukel Andrews
©Candice Gaukel Andrews
©Candice Gaukel Andrews
©Candice Gaukel Andrews
©Candice Gaukel Andrews
©Candice Gaukel Andrews
©Candice Gaukel Andrews
©Candice Gaukel Andrews
©Candice Gaukel Andrews
©Candice Gaukel Andrews
The new research on climate has shown why the Norse colonies on Greenland’s west coast & the Inuit settlements of Peary Land on the north coast died out.
So beautiful, thanks for sharing!
Awesome and beautiful images. The stark beauty of unadorned ice scapes and the breathtaking interface of land and water.
From equatorial Africa, a visit t green land is mandatory. Can someone introduce me to a group that will aid me get there? Thanks
Hi Joshua,
You can visit Greenland on a Natural Habitat Adventures tour! Check out our trip called Kayaking Greenland’s Arctic Riviera here: https://www.nathab.com/expeditions/arctic-antarctica/greenland-kayaking-adventure/. Hope to see you there!
Is it really the environment distorted and it causing typical environmental degradation ?
you are an artist with the images you capture; stunning light effects; thank you for taking the time to both document and share this beautiful land as it transforms
Awesome and beautiful images. The stark beauty of ice and the wonder of earthly reflections in water – two of my most favourite views!
I was also there a few weeks back – a magical experience.
Stunning photos – the ice forms are stark and breathtaking – reminding us that we are part of something much larger and more magnificent than we humans can possibly imagine!
Stunning photos, indeed.
It is a travesty that we are letting the world’s beautiful places slip through our fingers. Climate change is affecting Greenland, and I recently wrote about the melting of the World Heritage Aletsch Glacier in Switzerland. (hansfriederich.wordpress.com).
Let us hope the politicians of this world will see the light before it is too late, and introduce measures to deal with greenhouse gas emissions, although the current debate in the US Congress does not give much encouragement!
Nice.
Lovely sceneries! Breathtaking the colors and tranquility in the pictures. For being Scandinavian, I´m not yet tired at ice and snow. The strong landscape shiftings during the seasons makes you appreciate the snow and ice as well. It´s well-known that what happens in the North Pole, give consequences elsewhere. I wonder if people who aren´t living close to the area really understand that…and depending how they treat the environment in their own countries, give consequences for the North Pole.
Stunning photos.
It is a travesty that we are letting the world’s beautiful places slip through our fingers…I wrote about the melting of the Aletsch Glacier in Switzerland the other day.
Let us hope the politicians of this world will see the light before it is too late, although the current debate in the US Congress does not give encouragement!
Fantastic photos but I hope that you are not flying there? By flying you help speed up the changes by increasing the rate of ice melt…
Such beautiful images Candice! The state of the sea ice saddens me and I hope to get to Greenland soon so I too can help educate people about what we can do to minimize our carbon footprint.
great shots
awesome photos Candice,,,, would love to experience that some day 🙂
It saddens me greatly to hear of the changes taking place in this beautiful land. Breathtaking photos!
I am not sure why you are so sad. Climate changes by definition. The Arctic sea ice has increased this year by 29% over what it was last year – and the Antarctic sea ice is at a 35 year high. How much ice do you want?
There is a reason why this country was named Greenland – and it was named long before we had any industrial revolution or automobiles on the Earth. Cycles in the sun are the major reasons for loonger-term temperature variations.
Be skeptical when you hear climate change fanatics preach that the end of the world is coming and that Florida and other lands will soon be under water. Their predictions are only as good as their models – and if we have learned anything about climate models from the past, they are likely very flawed.
It is good to be good stewards of our resources and take care of the wonderful planet that God has given us, but do your own research and question what you hear. CO2 lags temperature, not the other way around. CO2 is not evil and using fossil fuels is not evil either. During the mid-70s when our automobiles were very inefficient, there was concern that we were going though another ice age (more dangerous than global warming) – and we found out how true that was, didn’t we?
Joe, I agree with you 100 percent. Thank you