Enjoy an exciting hike on the Greenland Ice Cap with your own private guide. This day trip is perfect if you’re looking to explore the Arctic landscape up close and experience something truly special. From the rugged hills surrounding Kangerlussuaq to the shimmering crevasses of the Greenland Ice Sheet, this day tour offers exhilarating physical activity, scientific insight, and soul-stirring scenery in one unforgettable expedition.
Glacier Hike Private Itinerary From Kangerlussuaq
Hotel Pick-Up & Briefing
Your expert private guide will meet you at your accommodation in Kangerlussuaq and provide a detailed overview of the day. You’ll be fitted with crampons and poles and receive a safety briefing over coffee before departure.
Drive Along the Ice Road
Travel in a luxury vehicle on a 35 km (22 miles) drive along the rugged Ice Road, the longest road in Greenland, which leads to the very edge of the Greenland Ice Cap. As you drive through the hills, your guide will discuss the area’s geology and help you spot wildlife, including arctic hares and musk oxen.
Arrive at the Ice Cap Edge & Begin the Glacier Hike
Your vehicle reaches Point 660, a remote outpost named for its distance (66 km) from Kangerlussuaq and one of the few accessible locations on Earth where you can walk directly onto the Greenland Ice Sheet, the second largest body of ice in the world.
Your guide will take time here to assist everyone with securing crampons to your boots and adjusting trekking poles. A final safety check ensures you are fully equipped and confident for the walk. You’ll be briefed on safe glacier navigation, including how to step securely, avoid crevasses, and respond to your guide’s signals. Then, the hike begins.
Entry onto the Ice Sheet
You walk slowly at first across the ice tongue—a lower extension of the glacier where ice and rock intermingle. This transition zone reveals fascinating patterns of moraine debris (glacial sediment), where dark volcanic sands and pebbles lie atop glimmering ice. Your guide explains how these materials were carried from inland mountains by glacial flow over thousands of years.
As you reach clean, blue-white ice, the crampons grip firmly, and the hike gains momentum. Beneath your feet are layers of compacted snow compressed over centuries, now slowly drifting toward the sea. Around you, the ice undulates in natural formations—some smooth and flat, others carved into serrated ridges or sunken troughs.
Exploration of Glacial Features
Your guide leads the group toward a meltwater stream, where you’ll see pure, turquoise water flowing gently in a shallow channel cut directly into the ice. Here, you pause to observe a moulin, a vertical shaft in the glacier where surface meltwater plunges into the depths, sometimes disappearing with a thundering roar. This is a rare chance to witness one of the glacier’s most dynamic features and learn how they accelerate internal melting.
Next, your guide will lead you toward a shallow crevasse field. These ice fractures form where the glacier stretches over uneven bedrock, and while small and stable in this area, they offer striking photo opportunities and a vivid demonstration of glacier movement. Your guide may lower a rope to allow a peek into one of the wider, deeper crevasses, shimmering walls of blue ice visible for several meters down.
New Glacier Zone
The second phase of the hike explores a slightly higher elevation area with smoother, wind-polished ice. You pass through sections where the ice glows an ethereal pale blue, and the surface feels firmer and drier underfoot. Here, the guide might demonstrate the use of ice axes in navigating sharper inclines (if conditions allow), offering hands-on instruction for those interested in learning.
Along the way, you may spot glacial striations—long, parallel scratches carved into the ice by embedded rocks, which tell the story of how the glacier grinds and sculpts the landscape as it flows.
Optional Short Climb or Ice Cave Visit (Seasonal)
If conditions are safe, your guide may offer the option to venture toward a small ice dome or shallow depression where an ice cave has formed due to melting and refreezing cycles. These caves often sparkle inside with light and patterns in the ice, giving you a rare chance to see the hidden shapes deep within the glacier.
Descent from the Ice Cap
In the afternoon, your guide will lead you back across the ice, taking a different route so you can see more of this incredible landscape. The return hike brings fresh views and new surprises: smooth patches of polished ice, soft ridges shaped by the sun, and narrow meltwater streams winding their way through the surface.
As you walk, you might hear the gentle cracking sounds of the glacier beneath your feet. These sounds are natural, part of the ice’s slow and steady movement. The further you go, the more you’ll start to notice just how many textures and colors make up the glacier: brilliant white, deep blue, and even streaks of dark grit from ancient volcanic dust or mountain rock.
Partway through the return journey, your private guide will lead you to a small rise for a short break. From here, the views are breathtaking, with the open sky above, endless ice stretching out around you. It’s a great place to stop, take some amazing photos, and bask in the incredible views around you.
As you get closer to the edge of the ice sheet, the scenery shifts again. The smooth blue-white ice starts to give way to rougher patches, where small stones and gravel have been carried along by the glacier’s slow progress. You’ll remove your crampons and poles here, marking the end of your time walking on the ice.
Scenic Drive Back to Kangerlussuaq
Relax in comfort as your guide drives you back, offering stops for photo opportunities and possible musk oxen sightings. Arrive back at your Kangerlussuaq hotel, where you can unwind for the evening after a rewarding Ice Sheet Hike.
