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Northern Light: A Planner's Perspective

by Werner Zehnder, June 2005

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Next summer, when Zegrahm travelers embark upon our Northern Light Expeditions to Greenland, Labrador, and Baffin, they will explore lands of great scenic beauty and observe some of the densest concentrations of wildlife in the Northern Hemisphere. They will also participate in a voyage that, from initial conception to departure, took roughly two years to plan and execute, which is about the average length of time it takes us to create one of our programs. We take a great deal of pride, justifiably so, I think, in the painstaking care we bring to the planning of each of our expeditions. And, as some of our passengers have expressed curiosity in how we select our destinations and tailor our itineraries, I thought I would use Northern Light to illustrate these processes.

How do we choose the regions we explore? Several ways, but quite often our travelers provide the inspiration. Passengers on board our ships and visitors to our office had been asking when we'd be returning to Greenland, which we last explored in 2000. At the same time, we were also receiving a number of requests for an expedition to Labrador, most notably from Elliott Miller, a frequent Zegrahm traveler who lived in Labrador for several years, providing humanitarian and medical assistance. He drew our attention to the wonders of the region and offered his help with the expedition.

Knowing Greenland's attractions from previous visits and inspired by Elliott's descriptions of Labrador, we hit upon the idea of a two-part voyage including both of these destinations, as well as landings on Baffin Island; travelers who joined us for both segments would complete a circumnavigation of the Labrador Sea.

We began roughing out an itinerary, gathering information from our expedition staff and ship captains familiar with the region. At this point, guided by the distinctive qualities of a destination, we usually decide upon an expedition's theme. Our Antarctica voyages focus primarily on natural history; our Black Sea departures are largely cultural explorations.

It's certainly no surprise that Northern Light will boast an extensive catalogue of natural wonders—Greenland's enchanting fjords and immense icecap, Labrador's largely pristine northern coastline, scattered isles set under mile-high mountains, Arctic waters replete with humpbacks, walrus hauled out on beaches, cliffs packed with seabirds, muskoxen and the possibility of polar bears on Baffin—but what we found extraordinary, especially in these remote, sparsely populated lands, was the variety of cultural and historical encounters.

During our explorations, we'll learn of the eastward migration of the pre-Dorset and Thule peoples and the westward migration of Viking settlers, and we'll meet with present-day Inuits in their villages and Greenlanders in their brightly painted towns. Explorers seeking the Northwest Passage, whalers, and Hudson Bay Company agents all left their marks on these lands, as did the missionaries of the Moravian Church, originally a Czechoslovakian sect, which was instrumental in exploring and settling Greenland and Labrador.

Our goals set, we turned our attention to operational matters. We scheduled our departures for midsummer, the ideal season for Arctic travel, when the almost endless hours of daylight increase our opportunities for spotting wildlife. The waters composing our route require a ship capable of navigating among ice floes, so we chartered the Clipper Adventurer with her ice-hardened hull, the ideal vessel for our voyages. We got in touch with the Canadian and Danish governments; enlisted the help of local operators; began assembling our expedition team, including experts in the flora, fauna, archaeology, and history of the region; and Elliott used his contacts among Inuit craftspeople to schedule demonstrations.

We also calculated ship timings and decided upon a final itinerary. One of the great attractions of voyages such as these is the chance to plan for expedition days. These are days without a set schedule; the expedition leader can improvise landings and Zodiac cruises based on conditions. With their spontaneous nature, expedition days capture the essence of true exploration and often provide the most memorable highlights of a voyage.

With a year to go before departure, preparations continue. We tie up last-minute details; the marketing team prepares the brochure; program managers begin taking reservations; and in the coming months the air department will complete flight plans. The last necessary element is travelers who thirst for discovery.