GREENLAND - A sea kayak expedition through a sea of ice

GREENLAND - A sea kayak expedition
through a sea of ice
Jean-Luc Grossmann

Greenland is a land full of contrasts: from harsh landscapes of ice and rock, to lush green valleys and hills; from cold, dark winters, to the endless summer days of the midnight sun. Animal life is rich, varied and spectacular, with musk oxen, reindeer, polar bears, arctic hares, eagles, seals, and giant whales. This is the place to see ice stretching endlessly into the distance, or carved into the most fantastic shapes in an incredible range of colors. This is the setting for a two months long fully self contained sea kayaking expedition.

During summer of 2005 Swiss/French paddlers, Jean-Luc and Sylvain Grossmann undertook a month-long sea kayaking expedition north of the Nuussuaq Peninsula off the West Coast of Greenland. The brothers paddled 320 kilometers through frigid waters. The distance and weather were demanding, but the sea of ice was the real challenge of their expedition. The two brothers fell in love with the rough nature and the unspoiled coast of the world's largest island.

In June and July 2007 Rafic Mecattaf and Thomas Truninger are joining Jean-Luc and Sylvain Grossmann for a two months sea kayaking expedition starting from the village of Uummannaq. The four paddlers will head north to Upernavik exploring a region of pure, untouched nature and very little civilisation. To reach the sea north of the big Svartenhuk peninsula they will enter the long Uvkusigssat Fjord East of the peninsula and pass a 30 km land stretch by pulling the kayaks. The paddle distance will be more than 500 km which is expected to be completed in approximately 45 days. The team will explore both by foot and kayak the J.P. Kochs Land named in the memory of the Danish captain and ice researcher Johann Peter Koch who crossed Greenland with Alfred Wegener from East to West in 1912-1913.

Biography:
Jean-Luc Grossmann is born in Paris and has lived for the past 20 years in Switzerland where he works as a professional photographer. The passion of people and outdoor photography, the thirst of discovery and adventure have taken him on several journeys all over the world. Sylvain is an experienced sea kayaker and shared several other expeditions and adventures with Jean-Luc. To see more of Jean-Luc’s expedition photos, go to www.photopulse.ch/topgalleries

Photographic equipment for the greenland sea kayak expedition 2007:

NIKON
two F6 body
fisheye AF 16 mm
Nikkor Zoom AF 17-35 mm / 2.8
Nikkor Zoom AF 28-70 mm
Nikkor Zoom AF VR 70-200
Teleconverter 1.7x

MAMIYA
645 AFD II body
AF 80 mm / 2.8
AF 35 mm /
Zoom AF 105-210 mm

POCKETWIZARD
2 radio transmitters PLUS II for distant shutter release

UK-GERMANY
Special underwater housing for Nikon F6 for sea kayak shots in rough sea

FUJIFILM
Velvia 50
Velvia 100
Provia 400F

For further details please visit: http://www.photopulse.ch/greenland2007