In July 2013 I helped sail Fin Perry’s beautiful 46-foot Aage Nielsen sloop “Elskov” from Nova Scotia, up the Labrador Coast and 200 miles into Hudson Strait to an Innuit village named Kimmirut on the South coast of Baffin Island. We encountered ice, cold temperatures, and strong (4 to 5 knot) currents flowing in and out of Hudson Strait. Very few yachts visit this part of the world – we were apparently just the 2nd yacht to visit Kimmirut in the past 15 or 20 years. The return crew made a counter-clockwise circuit of Hudson Strait and back down the Labrador Coast to Nova Scotia.
The beautiful Elskov getting ready to depart Baddeck, Nova Scotia
Berg at sunset
Weathered Berg
Weaving through light sea ice
Bergy bits, sometimes hard to see at night
Beautiful day off northern Labrador
36F water temps, 38F air temps, 25 knots of wind, rain. But don’t forget the sunscreen !!
Inland passage near Nain
The Torngat area of northern Labrador
Northern Labrador sunset
The Button Islands off Cape Chidley, turning point into Hudson Strait
Sunrise over Baffin Island
Anchored in Balcom Inlet, Pond Island – a seldom visited inlet with 30-foot tides. The Sailing Directions state of the shallow, narrow entrance: “Near low water heavy seas against the outgoing tidal stream break to the bottom.” Here we picked up chunks of floating glacier ice. They crackle noisily in our cocktails as they release CO2 trapped perhaps 10,000 years ago.
Taking on water at Kimmirut, Baffin Island. Engine in slow reverse to hold us off the rocks.
Sailing Stories - Max Fletcher 