Ilulissat means “icebergs,” and you couldn’t find a more appropriate name for this coastal Greenlandic town of some 4,600 inhabitants (and almost as many dogs). Here, at the mouth of the Ilulissat Icefjord, called Kangia in the Greenlandic language, huge icebergs break off from the Sermeq Kujalleq glacier at a rate of around 20 billion tons each year. 

These enormous icebergs, which float out along the blue waters of Disko Bay, are visible from almost every location in the city; some are as tall as skyscrapers. Nevertheless, you should walk the short distance south to the abandoned Inuit settlement at Sermermiut to get closer views of the drama. Sermeq Kujalleq is the fastest-flowing glacier in the world, moving at an average of 44 yards (40 m) each day. It is also a symbol of th...