The Arctic Experience

October 18, 2022

“Point into the wake!” shouted Adam as half of an iceberg calved off, perhaps a little under 100m from the position of the kayak pod. As the great hunk of frozen water rolled onto its side, Monique and the others braced themselves in their sea kayaks for some turbulence. The waves created by the violent calving were thankfully quite small and did not pose a threat to the pod, and rather delivered a spectacle that simply cannot be found in the warmer seas of the south.

Later that night, with glasses of scotch in hand, the kayakers dreamily gazed upwards into the endless Aurora Borealis - another treat awarded only to those who explore the great hyperborean North of the world.

“One hell of an experience” is how longtime TRAK owner Monique described her recent trip of a lifetime to Greenland.

Boarding the m/V Hondius in Akureyri, Iceland, Monique traveled all of the way from Calgary, Alberta for an adventure in arctic sailing and sea kayaking in the legendary Scoresby Sund of East Greenland.

The Arctic Experience with Oceanwide Expeditions

Our friends at Oceanwide Expeditions pioneered the concept of taking guests into otherworldly polar environments. With their fleet of ice-strengthened vessels, now numbering 5 strong, they’ve brought people from all over the world to Greenland, Spitsbergen/Svalbard, Antarctica, and Northern Norway. They’re the leaders in providing a premium ship-life experience for guests who are seeking high latitude adventures.

The expert guides aboard each vessel are eager to get you off the ship and into the action as often as possible. Sea kayaking is the best way to explore the rugged coastlines of these polar regions, often paddling similar shores to the ones paddled by the Inuit creators of the qajaq. Other excursions include snowshoeing, hiking, and photography sessions via-zodiac. With brilliant specimens of arctic mammals to meet and a stark geography to interpret, the Oceanwide guides engage you in a way that other operators can’t live up to.

Each Oceanwide trip is also joined by subject matter experts such as marine biologists, naturalists, geographers, cartographers, historians, and professional photographers who are more than happy to share their knowledge of these regions through out the trip. Joining the various-topic lectures aboard the vessel, then heading out on an excursion is a signature part of the Oceanwide experience.

The TRAK Connection

Oceanwide is now equipping their polar vessels with fleets of TRAK 2.0 kayaks, whose compact portability and seaworthiness have enhanced their kayaking programs greatly for those who want to pursue some real paddling during their expeditions in the North. The nimble and agile TRAK kayaks make navigating fields of icebergs possible, occasionally being required to punch through the layers of ice which form upon the sea on chilly mornings in high latitudes.

As makers of the TRAK 2.0, our alliance with Oceanwide is a natural fit - Oceanwide and TRAK have both long endeavored to take kayaking experiences above “pony rides” and into the realms of real expedition paddling. Paddling a skin-on-frame kayak at high latitudes is a magical experience that allows you to connect with the origin of this sport in the waters which demanded the creation of these perfect arctic craft.