We strike up a conversation with a hunter who is out feeding his dogs. He has 7 adult dogs, 4 young dogs and 3 small puppies of 3 months. One dog is called Trump.
We will laugh and ask why? He replies with a laugh and says "It's a scandal... It's angry and strange and doesn't want to be petted". He talks about life as a hunter. Both fishing grounds and hunting grounds are far away, so he travels a lot, but makes sure to get to his dogs every day he is home.
He has just been out shooting 20 reindeer that the people in town have ordered. Later, they also go musky hunting. Being a hunter is physically hard, because the animals are often a long way from the coast and have to be carried manually to the boat.
The reindeer are carried out from the mountain with a band around their heads. They each weigh 50 to 90 kg, so it's heavy work. But he is a cool guy who also keeps busy in his spare time. Marathon running in the Greenlandic terrain is challenging - but as he says - Greenland is my home and I love everything about it.
On the last hunting trip, his son shot his first reindeer, so the next generation is well on its way. The hide was carefully cleaned and is an everlasting memory of a great day.
Ilulissat has got a new Isfjord museum.
The museum is built like a twisted sculpture. It looks very nice as it lies there on the hiking route towards the fjord. It is located outside the city's sled dog area, so on the way out you get an insight into the interaction between nature and people that still exists.
It is forbidden to wear shoes inside, so we are given a pair of slippers and thus do not damage the new wooden floor. It is simply structured, with information in balls that look like ice cubes. So it's not a typical museum where you have to stand and read a lot while looking at a gadget in a cupboard. In the middle of the room, a drill core with ice from the ice cap is on display. With Virtual Reality you get good information about the scientific research into ice and the data it finds about the climate of the past.
We go on a hike, on a route that goes up a small mountain, around the pinnacle and into the ice fjord. There are small meltwater "lakes" and low vegetation.
The Greenlandic nature is large and every time you are at a high point - the view reminds you of how big it really is. Many times we have thought - well, it's just over there and sent the drone up. "Just over there" is typically 2 km away - "it's probably not that far" is 10+ km.
It is beautiful to stand and enjoy the view of the icebergs that stick up here. In the water we even spot a humpback whale. It is right nearby... about 1400m away
