Uummannaq

Uummannaq stands on a small island beneath a heart-shaped mountain of red gneiss that gives the town its name and its skyline. Painted houses cling to the rock above a harbour full of dinghies and drifting ice, and the surrounding fjord system is one of the most dramatic in the country. In winter the sea freezes solid enough for dog sleds to run between the settlements, a way of travelling still central to life this far north. The old turf and stone church, the mummy find at nearby Qilakitsoq and the hunting culture of the outlying villages define the region.