Cape Farewell

Cape Farewell is a headland on the southern shore of Egger Island in the Nunap Isua archipelago and marks the southernmost point of Greenland. Its coastal position places it at the terminus of long fjords and along iceberg‑studded sea lanes, and the area appears in expedition-style climbing and sailing cinema because of the remote granite walls and committed logistics required to reach them.

The catalogue film that focuses on the region, Vertical Sailing Greenland, follows a Belgian crew — Sean Villanueva O’Driscoll, Nicolas and Olivier Favresse, Ben Ditto and captain Bob Shepton — as they sail from Upernavik down the coast to Cape Farewell, using a boat as both basecamp and transport. The crew refer to an objective called the “Impossible Wall” and treat these granite fjords as long-term projects: the film documents cold rock climbing, dodging icebergs, and the cramped, workmanlike life aboard a small expedition vessel. Scenes alternate between climbing sequences and practical tasks — navigation, instrument checks, and waiting out unsuitable weather.

For viewers, the film is instructive about the sailing-and-climbing formula: how teams stage access to remote walls, the patience required for weather windows, and the daily compromises of living aboard while pursuing big-wall objectives. The footage is less about establishing new grades or first ascents and more about showing how a mixed crew turns a coastal fjord into a season-long climbing objective, with an emphasis on logistics, interpersonal roles, and the photographic perspective that documents the trip.