All travel and expedition activities inside the NE National Park require prior authorization from the Governmanet of Greenland. To find out more information on applying for an expedition permit please visit expeditionsgreenland.gl
Northeast National Park
The Northeast National Park encompasses a vast and diverse landscape, showcasing unparalleled Arctic wilderness. It holds immense ecological value, supporting unique wildlife populations and fragile ecosystems. Within this pristine environment also lie significant archaeological and historical sites, remnants of Paleo-Inuit and later Inuit cultures, as well as evidence of early European exploration, scientific expeditions and Greenland’s fur trapping era. These sites are invaluable repositories of Greenland's past, offering insights into human adaptation and interaction with the Arctic environment. To protect these irreplaceable cultural resources, some landing sites require visitors to be accompanied by an NKA-approved guide (see table below), ensuring knowledgeable interpretation and adherence to preservation protocols.
Protection of cultural sites and artefacts
Here, you will find crucial information concerning park regulations and cultural heritage protection, ensuring responsible and sustainable exploration of this extraordinary region. The protection of ancient and historic cultural remains in the National Park is regulated under Inatsisartutlov nr. 11 af 19. maj 2010 om fredning og anden kulturarvsbeskyttelse af kulturminder. When encountering objects of cultural, historic, or archaeological significance, please be aware of the following:
- It is strictly prohibited to pick up or disturb, collect, remove, or manipulate any man-made objects, feature, construction or historic building. This includes the removal or manipulation of stones and rocks, soil, or other components associated with a feature, construction, building or monument.
- It is strictly prohibited to build campfires, disturb vegetation, or alter any part of an area within a 50m radius (100m radius in the National Park) of a man-made monument, building or construction of cultural, historic or archaeological significance.
- It is strictly prohibited to use historic buildings, constructions and monuments as sleeping quarters, waste dumps or depots.
Geological samples and preserved biological materials
Items of ancient botanical, zoological or geological origin (e.g., sub-fossils and fossils, meteorites, animal remains, ancient driftwood, and paleo-botanical remains) may not be collected without prior authorization by the Greenland National Museum and Archives. An application permit for sample collection of the above-mentioned categories in Greenland is available at expeditionsgreenland.gl.
NKA-approved guides
Please be aware that there are specific requirements to access some cultural heritage sites in the National Park. These regulations are in place to safeguard the delicate archaeological and historical remnants that offer invaluable insights into Greenland's past, spanning from Paleo-Inuit settlements to more recent exploration endeavors. The specific access requirements, which may include mandatory accompaniment by NKA-approved guides, are designed to ensure that visitors experience these sites responsibly. A table detailing vulnerable cultural sites and rules for visitors is provided below:
No. | Site Name | NKAH nr. | Description | Access | Visitor rules |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Offley Ø – Hall’s grave, Hall Land | 5523 3923 3920 3912 3913 | The area possesses several very important Paleo-Inuit and Thule culture Inuit settlements, as well as the memorial for the American expedition (Hall’s grave). | Admission only with NKA-approved guide. | Only 20 visitors at a time, a few times in a year. |
2 | Frigg Fjord, Johannes V. Jensen Land | 4412 | The Adam C. Knuth Site is the largest Independence I site in Johannes V. Jensen Land. Nearby is a small Greenlandic Dorset Site and two whale skulls. | Admission only with NKA-approved guide. | Only 20 visitors at a time, a few times in a year. |
3 | Kølnæs, Kap Eiler Rasmussen, Peary Land | 2042 4893 4894 4896 4897 | Site of the 15th century umiaq discovered by E. Knuth. The demarcated area possesses several important Paleo-Inuit and Thule culture Inuit settlements. | Site of the 15th century umiaq discovered by E. Knuth. The demarcated area possesses several important Paleo-Inuit and Thule culture Inuit settlements. | Only 20 visitors at a time, a few times in a year. |
4 | Lower Midsommer Lake, Peary Land | 4357 4366 4376 4364 4382 5201 5202 5203 5204 5205 5206 5208 5209 5210 5211 5256
| The area contains the only known Paleo-Inuit settlement in the interior of Greenland. | Admission only with NKA-approved guide. | Only 20 visitors at a time, a few times in a year. |
5 | Deltaterasserne, Jørgen Brønlund Fjord | 5242 | A large Paleo-Inuit settlement lying on the southern shore of Jørgen Brønlund Fjord.
| Admission only with NKA-approved guide. | Only 20 visitors at a time, a few times in a year. |
6 | Kap Harald Moltke, Peary Land | 4367 4370 4384 4387 4389 4393 4400 4403 4404 4406 5251 5252 5253
| A cluster of Paleo-Inuit and Thule culture Inuit settlements along with the Molktehus research station and airstrip. | Admission only with NKA-approved guide. | Only 20 visitors at a time, a few times in a year |
7 | Brønlundhus, Kap Knud Rasmussen, Jørgen Brønlund Fjord | 4402 5245 4398 5246 4375 4373 5247 4374 4380 4390 | Several small and large settlements mostly from the Paleo-Inuit and Thule culture Inuit culture phases. | Admission only with NKA-approved guide. | Only 20 visitors at a time, a few times in a year. |
8 | Kap Holbæk, Danmark Fjord | 4342 | A large Paleo-Inuit settlement. | Admission only with NKA-approved guide. | Only 20 visitors at a time, a few times in a year. |
9 | Lolland Sø, Danmark Fjord | 4343 | A Paleo-Inuit settlement is found on the shore of Lolland Sø. | Admission only with NKA-approved guide. | Only 20 visitors at a time, a few times in a year. |
10 | Amdrup Land | 378 379 380 381 390 5147 5174 5176 5183 5187 5222 5224 | A multicomponent Paleo-Inuit and Thule culture Inuit settlement area. Artefacts are still observed on the ground surface and should not be picked up or moved. | Admission only with NKA-approved guide. | Only 20 visitors at a time, a few times in a year. |
11 | Kap Jurgensen, Amdrup Land | 5223 | A large Thule culture Inuit settlement is located by the river on the southern shore of Kap Jurgensen. | Admission only with NKA-approved guide. | Only 20 visitors at a time, a few times in a year. |
12 | Henrik Krøyer Holme, North East Water
| 376 5189 | The area possesses Thule culture Inuit winter settlements representative of early whaling activity in Northeast Greenland. | Area is closed to the public. | No entry. |
13 | Eskimonæs, Holm Land | 375 384 385 386 5148 5151 5152 5153 5154 5155 5156 5157 5158 5167 | Several significant Paleo-Inuit settlements along the coast. Eskimonæs is a large Thule culture Inuit settlement with two whale skulls found on the beach. | Admission only with NKA-approved guide. | Only 20 visitors at a time, a few times in a year. |
14 | Grave of Jørgen Brønlund, Lambert Land | 10 | Traces of Brønlund’s last days might still be found in the area.
| Area is closed to the public. | No entry. |
15 | Sanddal | 13 20 23 | A few, but very visible and vulnerable Paleo-Inuit settlements. | Admission only with NKA-approved guide. | Only 20 visitors at a time, a few times in a year. |
16 | Kap Sankt Jacques, Île-de-France | 2 4 | Kap Sqnkt Jacques is one of the largest and most important Paleo-Inuit sites in the Eastern Arctic. It contains over 400 structures attributed to the Greenland Dorset. | Admission only with NKA-approved guide. | Only 20 visitors at a time, a few times in a year. |
17 | Penthièvre Fjord islands | 33 34 35 36 | Extensive Paleo-Inuit settlements are found scattered across the twosmall islands. | Admission only with NKA-approved guide. | Only 20 visitors at a time, a few times in a year. |
18 | Kap Amelie | 61 | A small but important Paleo-Inuit site with an associated “tower trap”—one of only two known from Northeast Greenland. | Admission only with NKA-approved guide. | Only 20 visitors at a time, a few times in a year. |
19 | Germania Land | 6 | A Paleo-Inuit habitation that includes a unique special winged axial house feature associated with the Greenlandic Dorset. At the top of the island is a cairn built by members of the Danmark Expedition. | Admission only with NKA-approved guide. | Only 20 visitors at a time, a few times in a year. |
20 | Germania Land | 122 125 130 131 143 150 151 157 158 165 166 172
| Several significant Thule culture Inuit settlements with a high concentration of graves. A few Paleo-Inuit settlements are also found in the area. | Admission only with NKA-approved guide. | Only 20 visitors at a time, a few times in a year. |
