Trophy Hunting Greenland: The ultimate humane trophy-hunting experience

If you consider yourself an adventure hunter, then Trophy Hunting Greenland might just have an interesting opportunity for you. The company combines a unique nature experience with the chance to hunt the legendary musk ox.
 
Known as a survivor of the last ice age and, for some, the ultimate animal to hunt, the majestic musk ox can be found in very few places on earth. One of those is the area of Kangerlussuaq in Greenland, where the company Trophy Hunting Greenland is located.

Owner Erik Lomholt-Bek has over 30 years of hunting experience in Greenland, during both the winter and the autumn. “We get people from all over the world who want to hunt musk oxen,” he says. “Trophy hunting is very different from more traditional hunting that many hunters are familiar with, so the ones who come here come because we can offer them an experience they can’t find anywhere else.”

The hunting season in Greenland is divided into two periods. Winter hunting takes place from 10 March to 10 April, while the autumn hunting runs from August until the beginning of October. In winter, the main focus is on musk oxen, along with with caribou and small game, while autumn hunting focuses on reindeer, along with musk oxen and small game.

“The biggest difference between the two seasons is that, in the winter, you can be 80-years-old and have trouble walking and we can still take you out using our motor sledges, plus we will find a musk ox for you to hunt,” Lomholt-Bek explains. “During the autumn season, you have to be in good shape, as we are out in the wild and you will have to walk everywhere. And walking ten kilometres in the wild here is nothing like walking ten kilometres on a wooden path on a hunting trip in Poland or Scotland.”

A humane way of hunting

One important thing to note, when it comes to hunting musk oxen, is that the musk ox dies a slow and painful death if not killed by hunters. When the animal gets old, its teeth become worn down because of the flint on the ice sheet, where it forages for plants. When that happens, the animal is no longer capable of chewing cud, and eventually dies of hunger.

“Our trophy hunters shoot old musk oxen before they suffer from a painful death, and I, for one, think it’s the right thing to do, as they don’t contribute to the gene pool,” Lomholt-Bek argues. “Because of its extremely warm wool, a musk ox doesn’t die of cold, nor does it have any real predators, so to put them out of their misery, it actually makes a lot of sense for our hunters to shoot them when they get old.”

The missing piece

There is also the opportunity to hunt reindeer in the autumn, but most people come to Trophy Hunting Greenland to hunt musk oxen. “For many, a reindeer is just another deer, and a lot of our customers have shot almost everything there is to shoot in the world,” says Lomholt-Bek. “But the musk ox is the missing piece in their collection. It is, in many ways, the ultimate trophy.”

To make hunting trips as authentic as possible, Trophy Hunting Greenland focuses on the whole experience. Every hunt has one guide for two hunters, and the hunters live in the camp out in the hunting area, where they also have to help out with the work. This is one of the reasons why Trophy Hunting Greenland is one of Greenland’s more affordable hunting experiences, Lomholt-Bek explains.

“The hunters we have don’t just come to Greenland to kill some animals and then leave again. They come because they really want to experience the wilderness and the hunting that we have here. It’s more authentic than other places, where everything is more controlled and regulated. This is wild nature and hunting the musk ox is the real thing.”

Website: trophy-hunting-greenland.dk
Facebook: trophyhuntingkangerlussuaq