Alanngorsuaq is a 411 metres (1,348 ft) high mountain

Mountain

Image:Himalaya_annotated.jpg|thumb|right|The Himalayan mountain range with Mount Everestrect 58 14 160 49 Chomo Lonzorect 200 28 335 52 Makalurect 378 24 566 45 Mount Everestrect 188 581 920 656 Tibetan Plateaurect 250 406 340 427 Rong River...

 in the Qeqqata

Qeqqata

Qeqqata is a new municipality in western Greenland, operational from 1 January 2009. The municipality was named after its location in central-western part of the country. Its population is 9,677 as of January 2010. The administrative center of the municipality is in Sisimiut...

 municipality in western Greenland

Greenland

Greenland is an autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark, located between the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Though physiographically a part of the continent of North America, Greenland has been politically and culturally associated with Europe for...

. It is located on the mainland of Greenland in Sisimiut

Sisimiut

Sisimiut is a town in central-western Greenland, located on the coast of Davis Strait, approximately north of Nuuk. It is the administrative center of the Qeqqata Municipality and the second-largest town in Greenland, with a population of 5,460 people as of 2010. The site of the present-day town...

 valley, approximately 3 km (1.9 mi) east of the town.

Geography

Alanngorsuaq is a standalone mountain, separated from the Nasaasaaq

Nasaasaaq

Nasaasaaq is a high prominent mountain in the Qeqqata municipality in western Greenland. It is located on the mainland of Greenland, immediately to the southeast of Sisimiut on the northern coast of Amerloq Fjord, a tributary of Davis Strait....

 massif in the south by a shallow saddle. The mountain massif is spread out over 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) in the west-east direction, constituting the terminal point of a long mountain range extending from the Pingu mountain group halfway between Davis Strait

Davis Strait

Davis Strait is a northern arm of the Labrador Sea. It lies between mid-western Greenland and Nunavut, Canada's Baffin Island. The strait was named for the English explorer John Davis , who explored the area while seeking a Northwest Passage....

 and the Greenland ice sheet

Greenland ice sheet

The Greenland ice sheet is a vast body of ice covering , roughly 80% of the surface of Greenland. It is the second largest ice body in the world, after the Antarctic Ice Sheet. The ice sheet is almost long in a north-south direction, and its greatest width is at a latitude of 77°N, near its...

 . The range flattens considerably towards the east in the area of Kangaamiut dike swarm north of Kangerlussuaq

Kangerlussuaq

Kangerlussuaq is a settlement in western Greenland in the Qeqqata municipality, located at the head of a fjord of the same name. It is Greenland's main air transport hub, being the site of Greenland's largest commercial airport....

, due to pressure exerted by the icesheet for long periods in the past. The Nasaasaaq ridge connects to the other latitudinal ridges approximately 15 km (9.3 mi) east of Sisimiut.

Topography

The 2.5 km (1.6 mi) long summit ridge of Alanngorsuaq is of roughly east-west direction, with the summit in the center. The southern slope falls mildly towards the saddle, while the northeastern wall falls with a steep cliff in its western part, gradually easing towards the east. It is the only part of the massif of interest to mountaineers

Mountaineering

Mountaineering or mountain climbing is the sport, hobby or profession of hiking, skiing, and climbing mountains. While mountaineering began as attempts to reach the highest point of unclimbed mountains it has branched into specialisations that address different aspects of the mountain and consists...

.

Tourism

Recreation

Alanngorsuaq is surrounded by several lakes to the west and northwest, one of which serves Sisimiut town as a water reservoir

Reservoir

A reservoir , artificial lake or dam is used to store water.Reservoirs may be created in river valleys by the construction of a dam or may be built by excavation in the ground or by conventional construction techniques such as brickwork or cast concrete.The term reservoir may also be used to...

. Two reservoirs in the valley provide the town waterworks with 882000 m³ (1,153,612.4 cu yd) of water, while another two can supply a minimum of 7200000 m³ (9,417,244.5 cu yd) annually. Sisimiut valley is the primary recreation areas for the townspeople, with easy access to the reservoirs by a gravel road in the middle part of the valley. The summit itself is very frequently visited from the southern side for its wide view over the valley and the mountain ranges encircling it from three sides.

Skiing

Cross-country skiing

Cross-country skiing

Cross-country skiing is a winter sport in which participants propel themselves across snow-covered terrain using skis and poles...

 around the mountain is popular in winter, while a small lift for downhill skiing

Alpine skiing

Alpine skiing is the sport of sliding down snow-covered hills on skis with fixed-heel bindings. Alpine skiing can be contrasted with skiing using free-heel bindings: Ski mountaineering and nordic skiing – such as cross-country; ski jumping; and Telemark. In competitive alpine skiing races four...

is installed on the southern slope, due south of the summit.

Polar Route

The tough, 160 km (99.4 mi) long Arctic Circle Race takes place each winter, with the trail partially overlapping with the Polar Route from Sisimiut to Kangerlussuaq. The race was inaugurated in 1998, since then becoming an international competition. The Polar Route passes through the saddle between Nasaasaaq and Alanngorsuaq, and the summit is sometimes visited by way of a variant.