🔊 Ilulissat’s Dog Choir

Close-up portrait of a Greenland sled dog with white fur and ginger markings on its head.


In Ilulissat, you may hear the icefjord creaking or icebergs calving in the distance, or wind moving across open ground, but threaded through it all is the constant presence of dogs. Roughly 2,300 sled dogs live in the Ilulissat area, and their voices carry across the landscape. You hear them everywhere: while walking to the harbor, standing outside the grocery store, pausing on a quiet street at dusk. They perform the town’s living soundtrack, a chorus that reminds you of tradition, landscape, and the enduring relationship between people, animals, and the land in Greenland.

  • White Greenland sled dog curled up on the bow of an orange fishing boat resting on land in Ilulissat, Greenland.
    A sled dog naps atop an orange boat pulled ashore for the season in Ilulissat.
  • Off-duty Greenland sled dog resting on a rock in Ilulissat, Greenland, with snow and dark volcanic rocks in the background.
    An off-duty Greenland sled dog relaxes among the rocks and snow outside Ilulissat.
  • White Greenland sled dog sleeping on a painted doghouse in Ilulissat during late winter, part of the town’s traditional sled dog culture.
    A resting sled dog on the edge of Ilulissat—where working dogs remain part of daily life, even when the sleds are still.
  • Young Greenland sled dog puppy running up a snowy hill to investigate visitors near Ilulissat.
    A curious sled dog puppy races uphill to greet visitors.
  • Off-duty Greenland sled dogs resting in a snow-covered field near Ilulissat, Greenland.
    A team of off-duty sled dogs relaxes in the snow outside Ilulissat.

The constant voices of Ilulissat’s sled dogs, recorded in late winter.
Naturalist’s Notebook
hand drawn magnifying glass

Notice

The volume and intensity of the dogs’ chorus fluctuates throughout the day. Make note of the times when it is most noticeable to you. Are they the same each day?

hand drawn pencil

Diagram the barks

At first the dog sounds will be chaos. But as you pay attention, you’ll be able to distinguish high barks from low, and howls from repetitive yips. Make a diagram with the vertical axis indicating pitch and the horizontal axis indicating time. Can you create a visual snapshot of the dog sounds?

Posted In: Greenland, Ilulissat, Language of Place, Soundscapes, Tracks & Traces

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