Fantastic week around Svalbard

We started our circumnavigation of Spitsbergen with a visit to the Russian settlement Barentsburg. A short sightseeing with local guides gave a good overview about the history and living condition of today’s inhabitants of this still active mining town. A culture show with dances and singing brought us closer to Russian culture.

The second day started quite cloudy and foggy in Krossfjorden, but it was highlighted by a spotting of a polar bear with a cub, resting under a cliff at Signehamna. We continued our way to Ny Alesund and were lucky to see another polar bear with a cub quite close to the settlement. We got to know that Ny Alesund was once the most northern permanent settlement in the world, a mining community until they closed it down in 1963. Now it’s a research station with 30 – 100 scientists, depending on the season. After the short introduction to New Alesund we had enough time to explore ourselves and see the remains of polar expeditions which started from there.

The third day became very busy, but started with a calm landing in Raudfjorden, at Alicehamna. The afternoon landing at Ytre Norskoya had to be cancelled, because we spotted a polar bear in the area. But on our way we met a very playful humpback whale, that was giving a big show around the ship. So the expedition team decided to go to Magdalenefjorden instead, what proved to be a very good decision, as it was incredible there. Sunny, warm, no wind and white sand – so also perfect  swimming conditions for the brave, that were not scared of the 6 degrees cold water. During the night we passed 80° north and Moffen Island.

On our fourth day we started with a polar circle boat trip to Alkefjellet, “The New York” for the Brünnich´s Guillemots – that nest in this huge basalt formations and were flying around us at all times.  Despite of the fog we could do the afternoon landing at Torellnesset as well, where we could go really close to a big walrus colony laying at the beach. The fog that closed in stayed also the whole night and even the next day. 

So we had a day on the sea, closed in by fog and clouds, but perfect for a resting day, watching the ice floats and for lectures. All our landings to Kapp Waldburg, Kapp Lee were cancelled.

The sixth day in Hornsund started with cold wind and rain, but our landing at Burgerbukta with different activities like glacierwalking, kajaking and a trip with the polar circle boat could start like planned, just before we left the area we saw beluga whales next to the ship. During the night we went out a bit into the open sea to get the chance to see some whales.

Our last day on sea started with a landing in Isfjorden, in Trygghmana, were we had sunny conditions again, perfect for our glacierwalk and for the polar circle boat tour. The trip continued to the abandoned mining settlement Pyramiden along the various landscape of the Isfjorden. The evening we spent either in Pyramiden or in front of the beautiful glacier front of Nordenskiölbreen.

We reached Longyearbyen harbor during the night full of nice memories and pictures in our heads.   

Pay phone in Barentsburg

Fantastic culture show in Barentsburg

First polarbear this trip

The worlds northernmost train in Ny Ålesund

The worlds northermost settlement

Polarbear and cub just outside Ny Ålesund

Classic Svalbard view

Always on the lookout

Alicehamna

Kayak adventure in arctic waters

Swimmers in Magdalenafjord

The beautiful Magdalenafjord

Manuel found a polarbear on Ytre Norskøya so we had to cancel the landing. After all the polarbear is the king, and we are just visitors. 

Humpback whale

Very close to the ship

Birdcliff of Alkefjellet

Thousands of Guillemots 

Very hectic activity

The New York of birdcliffs

Torellneset

Beachbum

A shy Walrus

Out cruising in the ice

Kvalfangerbreen

Small man in big nature

Magic kayaktrip in the ice

Glacierhike in Burgerbukta

Born this year and almost ready for winter

Reindeer in the green fields of Alkhornet

The famous Alkhornet

Isfjorden

Early in the morning we reached our landing site Alkhornet located in the Isfjorden area and located at the northern entrance of Isfjorden.  The area has a striking landscape with a large bird cliff with a lush vegetation at its base.  The bird cliff consisted mainly of Guillemots and Kittiwakes but some glaucous gulls and artic skuas do also nest there.  We also had the chance to see many Rain Deer of different ages and gender.

During the afternoon we headed deep inside Isfjorden reaching Brucebyen and Nordenskjoldbreen, some of us went to an excursion to the partially abandoned Russian mining town of Pyramiden. 

In the afternoon we also gathered for the Captains Farewell Cocktail in the panorama lounge.

Our super expedition team!

Burgebukta, Hornsund and whales

 Today we reached Hornsund, a beautiful fjord system on the south west corner of Spitsbergen. This is the place where Wanny Wolstad overwintered for five years as a trapper. Our destination was Burgebukta, a bay on the north side of Hornsund. We were a little bit delayed due to ice conditions, but the weather was very nice, with high clouds, no winds and five  degrees Celsius. 

16 passengers including two of the expedition team members went glacier hiking on Burgebreen, and we had a good time watching the different ice formations on the glaciers. 

There was a lot of activities this morning, so we also had groups who went kayaking, and two groups who went cruising in Hornsund with the big polar circle boats.

After a long and nice landing in Burgebukta we went cruising with Fram in Hornsund, and the raw mountains and glacier fronts gave us a magnificent view. In the evening it was time for our famous crew show in the panorama lounge, and we also had a passenger who performed a lovely song for us. We had some great musical experiences as well as dancing performances, and from time to time it was interrupted by whale sightings on the sea.

Drift ice, Heleysundet and Edgeøya

 At early morning hours while crossing through the strait between Spitsbergen and Barentoya we encountered two bears on the ice a mother and a well grown calf.  We stopped the vessel and the two creatures approached us very closely they were curious.

At early morning hours we arrived to Heleysundet and we had a clear and sunny early start our goal was to land in Sundbukta.  

As we approached to the southwestern tip of Barentoya fog and ice was appearing through Freemansund channel and as soon we reached the landing site we realized that was clogged with ice and we decide to go instead to Kapp Lee.  Kapp Lee is located in the NW part of Edgeoya and there we were told about the hunters that used the hut.  

 On the beach there was a large herd of walruses where we spend some time looking and photographing them we also had a walk on the hills where we saw some rain deer.

In the afternoon we sailed south through Storforden along the ice edge looking for beards and our efforts paid off late in the evening where we encountered another bear the number six of the trip.  Ice was seen through the night.  On our way we also did encounter many Brunnich´s Guillemots with their recently jumped  nestlings swimming along the ice edge—a sight to be seen.

  

Walrusses and Polar bears

Today we had a soft start on the morning, with lectures and relaxations. Then, in the late morning we landed on Torellneset on Nordaustlandet. Nordaustlandet means the north-east land, and the name speaks for itself, it is situated on the north east corner of the Svalbard Archipelago and is separate from Spitsbergen.

The good weather does not seem to end on this voyage. We had beautiful sunny weather, the ice was drifting fast, and it was moving with the strong currents in Hinlopenstredet. We spotted a large herd of walruses laying on the beach, as well as walruses that were out swimming in the water and doing acrobatics. In the beginning we could even hear a seal that was singing in the water. 

There was also loads of birds in the ice just outside the beach, and we were fascinated about the rich wild life on this seemingly barren place. Two groups went glacier hiking on a glacier (name) that is actually connected to the big ice cap of Austfonna on Nordaustlandet, while some went out with our big polar circle boats to go cruising in the drift ice among swimming walruses.

Later in the day, we were going through the drift ice, and we had our dinner as usual, but it was interrupted as we heard on the speakers an announcement that there was a polar bear on the ice. Everyone of course ran out, and we were very happy to see that this was actually a mother with two cubs! They were not shy, and they approached the ship as we were laying still or slowly moving towards them. They were very playful and relaxed, and it was pure joy to watch the two small cubs playing around while the mother was trying to have a nap...