Sugar Loaf Bay is a bay in the Upernavik Archipelago in the Avannaata municipality in northwestern Greenland. It is an indentation of northeastern Baffin Bay. The name of the bay derives from the name of an island of the same name in the bay, Sugar Loaf Island (Greenlandic : Uummannaq, not to be confused with Uummannaq Island).
The bay is located in the northern part of Upernavik Archipelago, between Qullikorsuit Island in the south and Nuussuaq Peninsula in the north. [1]
At its widest − from the Nuussuup Nuua promontory on Nuussuaq Peninsula to the Nuussua cape on Kittorsaq Island [1] − Sugar Loaf Bay stretches for 22.5 km (14.0 mi). The length of the bay reaches its maximum of 41.3 km (25.7 mi) at the point where the Greenland ice sheet (Greenlandic : Sermersuaq) drains into the bay via Cornell Glacier. [1]
There are several islands and skerries in the bay, scattered over the entire area of the bay. Amitsorsuaq Island is the largest island in the bay, forming its southern boundary, and together with Nasaussaq Island separating the bay from the Nasaussap Saqqaa fjord.
Ikermiorsuaq Island occupies the center of the bay, while in the northern part of the bay there is a chain of islands paralleling the coastline of Nuussuaq Peninsula. These are, from northeast to southwest: the small Inussulikassak, Paornarqortut, Itissaalik (the largest of the chain), Saarlia, Timilersua (the second-largest), and Sugar Loaf Island. [1]
In the south, Kittorsaq Island and the northwestern corner of Qullikorsuit Island define the southern end of the bay, at the mouth of Nuussuap Saqqaa Fjord. [1]
Nuussuaq Peninsula defines the northern limit of Sugar Loaf Bay. [1] Several high, peninsular nunataqs of mainland Greenland extend into the bay: Anoritooq (1,108 m (3,635 ft)), Orsugissap Qaqqarsua (800 m (2,600 ft)), and Niaqornarsuaq (410 m (1,350 ft)). [1]
Nuussuup Kangia in the northeast and Nasaussap Saqqaa fjord in the southeast are prominent tributary fjords, the former forming an inward extension of the bay. In the east, Ieralassuit and Niaqornasuup Iterlaa are smaller indentations between the mainland nunataqs. [1]
The islands of Sugar Loaf Bay are uninhabited. Nuussuaq is the only settlement in the bay, located east of the western tip of the Nuussuaq Peninsula. [1] The bay is used as an inner waterway linking the settlements, offering partial shelter from the open waters of Baffin Bay for fishermen and hunters.
Uummannaq Island is a small (12 km2) island in Avannaata municipality in northwestern Greenland. Located in the south-central part of the Uummannaq Fjord, it is home to the most prominent mountain on the Arctic coast of western Greenland and to Uummannaq, the largest town north of Ilulissat.
Uummannaq Fjord is a large fjord system in the northern part of western Greenland, the largest after Kangertittivaq fjord in eastern Greenland. It has a roughly south-east to west-north-west orientation, emptying into the Baffin Bay in the northwest.
Nuussuaq, formerly Kraulshavn, is a settlement in Avannaata municipality in northwestern Greenland. It is the only mainland settlement in the Upernavik Archipelago, located near the western tip of the Nuussuaq Peninsula, on the northern coast of Sugar Loaf Bay, an indentation of Baffin Bay.
Nunavik Peninsula is a large peninsula in northwestern Greenland. It separates two cultural and geographical regions of northwestern Greenland: Uummannaq Fjord region in the southeast, and Upernavik Archipelago in the north.
Upernavik Archipelago is a vast coastal archipelago in the Avannaata municipality in northwestern Greenland, off the shores of northeastern Baffin Bay. The archipelago extends from the northwestern coast of Sigguup Nunaa peninsula in the south at approximately 71°50′N56°00′W to the southern end of Melville Bay in the north at approximately 74°50′N57°30′W.
Nuussuaq Peninsula is a mainland peninsula in northwestern Greenland, located at the northern end of Upernavik Archipelago, approximately 70 km (43 mi) to the south of Melville Bay. It is much smaller than its namesake in western Greenland.
Qullikorsuit Island is an uninhabited island in Avannaata municipality in northwestern Greenland. It is located in the northern part of Upernavik Archipelago.
Inussulik Bay is a bay in the Upernavik Archipelago in Avannaata municipality in northwestern Greenland.
Amitsorsuaq Island is a small, uninhabited island in Avannaata municipality in northwestern Greenland.
Sugar Loaf Island is a small, uninhabited island in Avannaata municipality in northwestern Greenland. The island is a single flooded mountain of 376 m (1,234 ft). Its name means "heart-shaped" in the Greenlandic language. The island is an important landmark in the region often afflicted by fog, and is used for coastal boat navigation.
Cornell Glacier is a tidewater glacier in Avannaata municipality on the northwestern shore of Greenland. It drains the Greenland ice sheet westwards into Nuussuup Kangia, a fjord inlet of Sugar Loaf Bay, to the east of the base of Nuussuaq Peninsula.
Nuussuup Kangia is a fjord in northwestern Greenland, located at the northern end of Upernavik Archipelago.
Kittorsaq Island is an uninhabited island in Avannaata municipality in northwestern Greenland. It is located in the northern part of Upernavik Archipelago.
Illulissuaq Peninsula is a mainland peninsula in northwestern Greenland, located in the northern part of Upernavik Archipelago
Tasiusaq Bay is a bay in the Upernavik Archipelago in the Avannaata municipality in northwestern Greenland. It is an indentation of northeastern Baffin Bay. The name of the bay derives from the name of the settlement of the same name in the bay.
Itissaalik Island is a small, uninhabited island located in Avannaata municipality in northwestern Greenland.
Timilersua Island is a small, uninhabited island in Avannaata municipality in northwestern Greenland.
Ikermiorsuaq Island is an uninhabited island in Avannaata municipality in northwestern Greenland.
Nasaussaq Island is a small, uninhabited island in Avannaata municipality in northwestern Greenland.
Nasaussap Saqqaa is a fjord in Avannaata municipality in northwestern Greenland.
