Arctic Northwest Passage Expedition Cruises

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Quick Facts about Northwest Passage

The Northwest Passage is a sea route that connects the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans through the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. It consists of a series of deep channels extending about 900 miles (1,450 km) from east to west. Reaching the Northwest Passage from the Atlantic runs into tens of thousands of giant icebergs as high as 300 feet (90 m) drifting between Greenland and Baffin Island. The exit to the Pacific is equally challenged by masses of ices between Alaska and Siberia.

The economic value of a short route connecting the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans attracted numerous exploration efforts staring from 1500s. Martin Frobisher explored Frobisher Bay in 1576, while John Davis sailed Davis Strait in 1585. In 1616, William Baffin and Robert Bylot sailed into Smith Sound and northern Baffin Bay. Sir John Franklin tried to navigate the passage but trapped in ice in 1846. Finally the Northwest Passage was sailed by Roald Amundsen in 1903-06 and by Sergeant Henry Larsen in 1940-42 and 1944.

In the past, the Northwest Passage has been virtually impassable because it was covered by thick, year-round sea ice. However, in recent years, climate change is allowing commercial traffic to pass through the Arctic via this once-impossible route.

Top 5 Reasons to Visit Northwest Passage

Sail through one of the most challenging sea routes and pay tribute to Franklin, Amundsen and other explorers
Enjoy spectacular landscapes found only in the far north when passing islands and channels
One of the most incredible places to witness polar bears and their cubs hunting on ice floes
Spend time with Inuit and see how they live who have called here home for thousands of years
See if you might be the lucky one to spot mysterious Narwhal along with belugas, whales and other Arctic animals!

Landing Sites in Northwest Passage

Iqaluit

The Nunavat capital is located on Baffin Island with a population around 7,500. It is a modern Inuit community. There are four territorial parks in and around Iqaluit. Historical buildings, such as the original Hudson’s Bay Post on the shore in Apex are also within easy reach.

Resolute Bay

Resolute Bay is one of Canada's most northern settlements. Because of the long winter night in the extreme north of Nunavut, its Inuktitut name is Qausuittuq meaning ‘place with no dawn.’

Prince Leopold Island

Prince Leopold Island is located in Lancaster Sound at the junction of Prince Regent Inlet and Barrow Strait. Somerset Island is situated 13 km (8.1 mi) to the southwest. It is named a migratory bird sanctuary with more than 500,000 pairs including thick-billed murres, black guillemots and northern fulmars.

Pond Inlet

Pond Inlet (Mittimatalik - Place where Mitima is buried) is situated on the northern tip of Baffin Island. It is renowned for its scenery. Mountain ranges are viewable in all directions and icebergs often dot the ocean.

Gjoa Haven

Gjoa Haven is an Inuit hamlet in Nunavut and the only settlement on King William Island at the heart of the Northwest Passage. It was named by early 20th-century polar explorer Roald Amundsen after his ship Gjøa. This is where Amundsen spent two years from 1903.

Grise Fiord

Grise Fiord, translated as 'place that never thaws', is an Inuit hamlet in the territory of Nunavut. It is the largest and the only public community on Ellesmere Island, which makes it the northernmost public community in Canada. It is also one of the coldest inhabited places in the world, with an average yearly temperature of −16.5 °C (2.3 °F).

Fort Ross

Fort Ross is situated on the Bellot Strait at the southeastern end of Somerset Island. Founded in 1937 as the last trading post to be established by the Hudson's Bay Company, it was operational for only eleven years as the severe ice conditions rendered it uneconomical and difficult to reach.

Dundas Harbour

Dundas Harbour is located on Devon Island (the largest uninhabited island on Earth). It is an abandoned settlement of a Royal Canadian Mounted Police Post, established in 1924. You can see the ruins of a few buildings as well as the resting place of two of the last men to be posted here.

Beechey Island

Beechey Island is the burial site for three members of the Franklin expedition: John Torrington, John Harnell and William Braine. There are memorials to Franklin and other polar explorers and sailors on the island, including Joseph René Bellot. In 1903, Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen stopped at the island at the beginning of his successful voyage in search of the Northwest Passage, paying respect to Franklin.

Cambridge Bay

Cambridge Bay is located on Victoria Island in Nunavut, Canada. It is the largest stop for vessels traversing the Arctic Ocean's Northwest Passage with a population of 1,766. Cambridge Bay, in Inuktitut ‘Ikalutuuttiaq’, means ‘good fishing place’, which has been a gathering place for Inuit for over 4000 years.

Cambridge Bay

Cape Dorset

Cape Dorset is located in Hudson Strait, where remains of Dorset culture were discovered, dating back to 1000 BCE. The Dorset people became extinct by 1500 AD but their traces are still visible when hiking nearby Mallikjuaq Territorial Park or Dorset Island.

Iqaluit

Resolute Bay

Resolute Bay is one of Canada's most northern settlements. Because of the long winter night in the extreme north of Nunavut, its Inuktitut name is Qausuittuq meaning ‘place with no dawn.’