This was the first
time for Fram to do a landing in Ymerbukta. We got a panoramic view of the
glacier Esmarkbreen and the most adventures ones also had a short walk on the
glacier. It was interesting to have a close look at the crevasses and melting water
channels. Some of us got some great pictures of the big calving. Some birds we
haven’t seen before on this trip showed up; scooters, purple sandpiper and eider
ducks. Manuel the bird man and his disciples were of course ecstatic.
In the observation
lounge onboard it was time for the Captains farewell speech. We had some rainy
days, sunny days, spotted 6 polar bears, many walrus, birds, walked on glaciers
and hiked in the beautiful Spitsbergen landscape. Everybody could therefore
join the crew when they sang “Oh what a beautiful voyage”. The song was
written by Tore Sivertsen, a Hurtigruten employee working on one of the ships
sailing on the Norwegian coast.
There was still one
more landing to enjoy though. We landed on the beach in front of the
Nordenskiold glacier and walked along the beach to Brucebyen. Translated to
English this means Bruce`s town. This town consists of 3 houses and one outdoor
toilet. The town is named after the Scottish oceanographer and scientist
William Spiers Bruce. He came to Svalbard the first time in 1898 when he joined
the expedition of Prince Albert of Monaco. Later he established The Scottish
Syndicate Company and hoped to find coal deposits of commercial value.
Brucebyen was built in 1919 as a base for the company`s coal exploration in the
area. Today one of the houses is used as duty cabin by the Governor of
Svalbard. A couple of years ago the cabin burned down, but has now been rebuilt
in the same style as the other huts. The cultural heritage is important on
Svalbard to enable us visitors to relive the Klondike feeling that existed on
Svalbard. It was still time for a final glacier cruise in front of Nordenskiold
glacier before we headed back on board.
