Quark - Northwest Passage - Amundsen Route

18 nights
Departure: 17 July 2006
Anchorage to Ottawa
Ship: Kapitan Khlebnikov (Icebreaker)

The quest for the Northwest Passage, connecting the Atlantic with the Pacific through North America’s Arctic, was an obsession of countless adventurers from the 16th century onward. But it wasn’t until the voyage of Roald Amundsen 100 years ago that the dream became a reality.

Tracing the spectacular route of Amundsen, Quark Expeditions takes you on a journey through the wilds that still yields a gratifying sense of achievement.

Itinerary

July 17 to 19 - Anchorage, Alaska, to Anadyr, Russia
	Arrive in Anchorage and transfer independently to the Millennium Hotel for an overnight stay in this gateway to Alaska’s wilderness. Next morning, fly west from Anchorage to Anadyr, crossing the International Date Line and "losing" a day. You then fly by helicopter to the Kapitan Khlebnikov.
July 20 to 21 - Chukotka Peninsula & Bering Strait
	After an evening departure, we begin our presentations on the wildlife, geology, glaciers and human history of the High Arctic. You have chances to spot whales en route to the Chukotka Peninsula, whose rugged shores and nearby islands are home to nesting auklets, puffins, guillemots and many other seabirds. Walk the coast among ancient ceremonial grounds and stone rings, the legacy of early human inhabitants. And we hope to visit centuries-old Whalebone Alley, a sacred place for native whalers on Ittygran Island. Next we sail through the Bering Strait separating Russia and the United States politically and geographically, where summers see countless migrating seabirds as well as bowhead, gray and Minke whales.
July 22 & 23 - Beaufort Sea
	Heading north into the Beaufort Sea, we cross the Arctic Circle and re-cross the International Date Line. As we sail past Point Barrow, the northernmost point of the United States, watch out for the bowhead whales that regularly migrate from the Bering Sea to their summer home in the Beaufort. Here we officially begin our journey through the fabled Northwest Passage: while ordinary expedition vessels are typically blocked by the thick, multi-year Arctic pack ice, we break through with relative ease.
July 24 to 26 - Herschel Island & Franklin Bay, Canada
	Just off the Yukon’s northern coast stands Herschel Island. Park rangers at Pauline Cove guide you among vestiges of the former whaling station, once home to as many as 2,000 people and a winter refuge for 19th-century ships. Amundsen wintered at nearby King’s Point before completing the first transit of the Northwest Passage in 1903–06. Immigration officers welcome you to Canada before we continue east across the shallow waters of the Mackenzie Delta. If time and conditions permit, we sail into Franklin Bay, where recent Quark Expeditions adventurers have spotted bowhead whales and seen polar bears on shore.
July 27–29: Amundsen Gulf, Victoria Island & Cambridge Bay
	Pushing across the Amundsen Gulf, we land on Victoria Island at the village of Holman, home of the Copper Inuit, whose 300 friendly residents make their living from hunting, trapping and print-making. As we continue eastward through the Dolphin and Union Straits, watch for whales, polar bears, seals and musk ox. We plan to land in Johansen Bay as well as nearby Cambridge Bay, where you can see the remains of the Maud, the three-masted schooner Amundsen sailed across the polar basin in 1922–24.
July 30–August 1: Victoria Strait
	The Kapitan Khlebnikov takes the western route through the challenging ice of the Victoria Strait, where Amundsen spent two winters learning dog-sledding skills. It is here too that Captain Leopold McClintock at last found traces in 1859 of Franklin’s expedition, including letters, ship’s artifacts and graves. Next we head north along the Boothia Peninsula via Larsen Sound, where we’ve often sighted polar bears. Watch for narwhals as we navigate the Bellot Strait separating Somerset Island from Point Zenith, the northernmost point of North America. We continue along the east or west coast of Somerset into Lancaster Sound, watching for beluga and bowhead whales, polar bears and Arctic seals.
August 2: Lancaster Sound & Beechey Island
	We hope to sail around flat-topped Prince Leopold Island, famed for its nesting seabirds. And then – congratulations, you’ll have joined the few people on the planet who have sailed the Northwest Passage! Our final stop is Beechey Island, where Franklin and his men spent a winter before tragically disappearing. At this desolate spot, you can contemplate the poignant memorial while celebrating our own successful voyage.
August 3–4: Resolute to Ottawa
	We disembark the Kapitan Khlebnikov at Resolute Bay for our flight back to Ottawa and a final night at the Fairmont Chāteau Laurier, then continue home independently after breakfast on August 4. Arrive in Anchorage and transfer independently to the Millennium Hotel (or a similar centrally-located hotel) for an overnight stay. Sometimes described as 'only 20 minutes from Alaska', Anchorage is a modern, bustling city just a short hop away from a wilderness of glaciers, mountains and forests.

Note: Please read this itinerary as a guide only. The exact programme will depend on local permissions and will vary to take best advantage of local weather and ice conditions and opportunities to experience wildlife. This is an expedition into a very little travelled area and flexibility is the key to the success.

Departure Dates and Prices

Prices are per person for 18 nights and do not include international flights.

Departure Date	Price per person
17 July 06	£8785

Price Includes:
Voyage as indicated in the itinerary. Flights as indicated in the itinerary. Pre- and post-cruise hotel accommodations in a shared twin room with breakfast as indicated in the itinerary. All meals throughout the voyage aboard the ship. All shore excursions and activities throughout the voyage by Zodiac and helicopter (as included in group excursions with no specific amount of helicopter time guaranteed). Program of lectures by noted naturalists and leadership by experienced expedition staff. Transfers and baggage handling between the hotels, airports and ship as indicated in the itinerary. All miscellaneous service taxes and port charges throughout the program. Comprehensive pre-departure materials and handbook.
Price Excludes:
International flights. Passport and visa expenses. Government arrival and departure taxes. Meals ashore. Supplement for single hotel accommodations. Baggage, cancellation and personal insurance. Excess baggage charges. All items of a personal nature such as laundry, bar and beverage charges and telecommunication charges, and the customary gratuity at the end of the voyage for stewards and other service personnel aboard (guidelines will be provided). Any possible helicopter flying time in excess of that offered for the group will be charged at an hourly rate to be announced onboard.