So, I started the day bright and early at 6:15am. Felt wide awake so I jumped out of bed, put on the coffee and contemplated my day. We are snuggled deep into the majestic fjords of East Greenland. Lesson number 1: when you are deep in the majestic fjords that run east/west, satellite signals from the equator are blocked. When satellite signals are blocked you do not have internet. When you do not have internet, your iPhone stops updating the time. So, when you think it is 6:15 and it is really 9:30, you feel a little foolish. No wonder I felt so wide awake.

Today we are deep into the Arctic Circle. Not close enough to see Santa but damn close. I ran off to attend a photo workshop lecture on panoramas. First rule, set the camera to manual – never use the automatic function. Yeah right, I was so out of my league but still enjoyed it and learned two very important facts: (1) the NatGeo photographer is cranky when the sun barely sets and he stays up all night for the perfect shot and (2) the other photographers took 1,500 photos yesterday making my 800 pictures feel like I’m normal. Or at least my new normal, see photo above.

Mark and I joined 18 others to go kayaking around Fon Fjord, the second largest coastal island lying in the middle of Scoresby Sund off of Rode, Greenland. It was one of the greatest experiences we have ever had. After 45 minutes to put on our “dry suit” we boarded Zodiacs to land on the beach where our double-person kayaks were waiting. After a brief lesson (we were one of the only newbies) we set out amongst the icebergs, ice floes, sea ice and glaciers. I have no idea which is which, but it was all magnificent. Terribly difficult to capture it in photos as my paddling skills were severely compromised with a camera in hand. But I managed a few shots. Our hearts could have stayed out there forever, but I am not sure our arms would have agreed. Thank goodness our arms held out long enough for the delicious hot chocolate greeting us when returning onboard.

The plan is to sail to the north side of the island tonight hoping and find water shallow enough to anchor, which ain’t that shallow. But the fjords are incredibly deep and if we cannot find a spot to anchor the captain will spend the night maneuvering around the ice. Hopefully he has backup. Who knows where we’ll end up in the morning but I’ll be sure to check the old-fashioned, battery-operated clock first.