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Yearly Archives: 2015 − Travelblog
Fjord of wind – fjord of colours – 04rd September 2015
Fri
4 Sep
2015
Fønfjord has got its name for a reason, and it lived up to its reputation. Of course the katabatic wind blows down and away from the inland ice, straight on the nose for us, that is. It is safe to bet the house on it. Pretty strong today, the wind.
But who says you can’t go ashore in Fønfjord?
Photo Fjord of wind – fjord of colours – 04rd September 2015
There is a nice little bay on the shore of Milne Land, where Ópal celebrated her lovely water ceremony. Meaning that we filled up our water supplies there. The captain put the bow straight on to the beach, and down into a little clear stream with the pump. Small ship pleasures!
Photo Røde Ø – 04rd September 2015 – 1/2
Rødefjord also has got its name for a reason. Deeply red sandstone. Near Red Island, nature has created an amazing wall of basalt columns like a pile of firewood. Vertical rock faces, just like Marlboro Country.
Photo Røde Ø – 04rd September 2015 – 2/2
But the icebergs are of course the best part. The famous iceberg graveyard north of Røde Ø, iceberg alley, iceberg city, whatever you want to call it. An incredible gathering of huge icebergs, mighty giants, grounded and surrounded with water calm like a mirror, scary dimensions and amazing numbers. Deep green colours indicate massive volumes of ice under water. After the zodiac tour, captain Hörður asked me if I liked it. What a question. If you don’t like that, then Greenland is not a place to go for you. The sheer beauty would make everyone speachless, I guess.
Basalt heaven in Vikingebugten – 03rd September 2015
Thu
3 Sep
2015
The night has brought a fresh, white cover of snow to the ship and to the land. But it is thawing already, getting grey and wet, and it will not last for long.
The crew has to fight some neargoing ice floes off with long poles during the night.
Photo Basalt heaven in Vikingebugten – 03rd September 2015
The whole country south of Scoresbysund consists of basalt. The blood of the Earth, shed when a crack started to split a huge continent from south to north. The crack kept growing and today we know it as the Atlantic ocean. The Earth’s blood that was spilled during early stages of that process, that is the basalt. A huge basalt plateau that later broke into two parts. The Færøer Islands are part of the eastern bit.
Photo Taenderne – 03rd September 2015
East Greenland south of Scoresbysund is the western bit. This is why we find so many of nature’s architectural masterpieces, the basalt columns, in this area, in all shapes and sizes. The snow makes the structures very appearent in many places.
Photo Hecla Havn – 03rd September 2015
It is clearing up in the afternoon. The rocky hills of Danmark Ø invite for some good hiking. Colourful rocks provide insight in billions of years of Earth history next to amazing views over a very fine bit of Greenland.
From Reykjavik to Scoresbysund
Wed
2 Sep
2015
It could have been a lovely calm night of desperately needed good sleep if that film team had not picked the little street just outside my guesthouse room to start filming at 5 a.m. I hope it will be a successful film, at least.
At 8 a.m., our small group of Greenland explorers met at the little domestic airport. Crossing the Denmark Strait in 27000 feet altitude is much faster and more comfortable than riding the waves for days.
Photo Blosseville Kyst – 02nd September 2015
The first part of Greenland that we saw was the Blosseville Kyst around Rømer Ø, south of Scoresbysund.
Photo Constable Point – 02nd September 2015
In Hurry Inlet, Ópal was waiting for us next to her sister vessel Donna Wood, a new member of the North Sailing fleet.
The first icebergs never fail to attract attention, and so do the mountains south of Scoresbysund. This wild coast is called Volquart Boons Kyst, a very inhospitable shore, with rugged mountains rising steeply more than 1000 metres high from the fjord, separated by some crevassed glaciers. A view as forbidding as attractive.
Photo Hall Bredning – 02nd September 2015
We want to get to the inner branches of the fjord, so we spend the afternoon sailing until we reach Vikingebugten. The anchor goes to the bottom and we go to bed.
Four polar bears, one walrus – 11th August 2015
Tue
11 Aug
2015
New trip, new luck. Old polar friends with their friends and relatives, a very familiar setting right from the beginning. Very pleasant.
A little bit of swell in the Isfjord entrance. Christmas-tree Willi finds out that the sea is something different than a forest. The shaking of a boat is less pleasant than the shaking of the trees.
Mirror images on the water in Forlandsund. Mountains and glaciers seem to rise both upwards into the sky and downwards on the water.
Photo Kongsfjord – 11th August 2015 – 1/2
Ny Ålesund is a good start, a gentle transition from zivilisation to the arctic wilderness. And meeting Marten Loonen, the head of the Dutch arctic station, is always a very pleasant affair, where you will always learn a lot. Geese and foxes change in having good and bad years, roughly similarly to lemmings. The cycles don’t have three years, but seven or eight. The grass, the reindeer, rain or snow, it is all part of the system. It is complex.
Photo Kongsfjord – 11th August 2015 – 2/2
A dead walrus on the shore as attracted two polar bear families. Two mothers, each with one cub of the year. One family is staying a bit away while the other one is feeding. The mother is paying full attention to the walrus carcass, while the cub is busy with a piece of driftwood. The small boat with the visitors off the beach is, however, completely irrelevant to them. A reach meal, a feast for bears and tourists. A wild bit of arctic nature. A great experience. Unless you are the walrus.
Erdmannflya – 05th August 2015
Wed
5 Aug
2015
A calm night, a calm passage northwards to Isfjord, interrupted only by a short stop when cod appeared on the depth sounder – dinner was secured. Time to show some photos, for the very first time, from our Beerenberg ascent on Jan Mayen in July.
Then we reach Borebukta, one of those bays in the rather civilised Isfjord area where there is not too much traffic. Once again, we venture into the arctic wilderness, without seeing anyone. Once again into the silent tundra, flat coastal plains, which seem boring from the distance but are actually full of details. An old, small sealing ship on the shore looks as if it was left behind by its crew with the intention to continue the voyage soon, but they never returned. What happened? No idea. (Amendment: the boat was left there by a well-known inhabitant of Longyearbyen usually known as „Hamarøyen“ – he came from the island Hamarøy – to serve as accommodation. The nearby lake has always been popular for fishing amongst the locals).
Beaches, interrupted by small capes and cliff coasts, incised rivers. Rock landscapes with fox dens, and very appropriately, two young polar foxes, one of them reasonably curious. A little herd of six reindeer making a curious semi-circle around us. A nice farewell from Spitsbergen’s tundra.
The surf had picked up and did not leave all boots dry. Good we had been able to avoid that during the trips so far.
Gallery Erdmannflya – 05th August 2015
- gallery anchor link: #gallery_732
Click on thumbnail to open an enlarged version of the specific photo.
A last, calm night at anchor in Colesbukta, then some final miles to Longyearbyen. Then the voyage is over. My very own party is based on fresh arctic char from the north coast, a present from Pål. It is enough for me for two days.
Bellsund – 04th August 2015
Tue
4 Aug
2015
Bellsund – sounds almost like home, a peaceful place J far away from all that ice, back in the green tundra under the noisy birdcliffs, the colourful flowers, the reindeer, the elegantly curved bays. After a day on the ship yesterday, it was nice to stretch legs a little bit, a good 300 metres up to get a panorama view of Bellsund. Akseløya with its amazing structures in the north, Fridtjovbreen, the large valleys Berzeliusdalen and Reindalen. The lush tundra with countless flowers on Midterhuksletta, interrupted by deeply incised ice wedges. The little rocky capes on the southern side, and some jagged mountains and wide glaciers in the distance. An amazingly beautiful country, on a good day.
Gallery Bellsund – 04th August 2015
- gallery anchor link: #gallery_730
Click on thumbnail to open an enlarged version of the specific photo.
A calm evening at anchor with a view to Fridtjovbreen rounds the day off.
Ice … with a little help from my friends – 03rd August 2015
Mon
3 Aug
2015
Yes, the ice keeps on keeping us busy for some time. The next dense belt of drift ice is just ahead of us. Sørkapp Land seems so close. Given these conditions, there are not many other ships in the area, but we are not the only ones now. The Hurtigruten ship MS Fram is north of us, steaming south, a fast, strong vessel with a friendly Captain. We continue behind Fram, the ship is wide enough to create a nice channel in the ice. Their passengers are enjoying the operation, and so do we. Not an everyday thing, definitely.
Photo Sørkapp – 03rd August 2015 – 1/3
After a first, dense section, the ice is getting more open. Kittywakes are fishing in Fram’s wake, and the wild scenery of Sørkapp Land provides a splendid background. And as a final highlight, a polar bear is showing up. A big, strong, proud male, battle-scarred with many scars on its face and nose.
Photo Sørkapp – 03rd August 2015 – 2/3
The wide passage around the south cape takes most of the night, and there are drift ice fields between us and the coast all of the time. Same now, in the early morning. Hornsund is in view, but behind wide ice fields. We are cruising between the ice floes, Pål is enjoying his time on the steering wheel, while I am watching for polar bears and writing this blog in between.
Photo Sørkapp – 03rd August 2015 – 3/3
We will keep a distance to Hornsund, let’s see where we end up today, probably Bellsund. A good, safe anchorage is the next thing we need, some rest for the skipper, a landing for everybody else.
Ice – 03rd August 2015
Mon
3 Aug
2015
Ice … we’ve had a similar headline before, didn’t we? Possibly. Now we are off Isbukta, southern east coast of Spitsbergen. At least, we have not been this far south before, recently, the south cape seems so close.
Earlier today, we thought once again that we were through, the ice stayed behind, open water ahead … but a few miles later, more ice, the next dense belt of drift ice. According to today’s ice chart, it should have been an isolated field of „open drift ice“, well, we have heard that before.
Photo Ice – 03rd August 2015
Habenichtbukta – 01st + 02nd August 2015
Sun
2 Aug
2015
Let’s forget yesterday. Too many tough hours were spent criss-crossing Storfjord, back and forth, in strong wind and high seas, trying to find an opening in the ice and a passage south. What looked like a passage turned out to be a dead-end road. The east coast of Spitsbergen looked so close, Hornsundtind was clearly visible, but as out-of-reach as the moon.
Habenichtbukta – 01st + 02nd August 2015
Finally we declared the case as hopeless for the time being and steamed off towards Edgeøya, some more hours against the waves, but then we found a good anchorage in Habenichtbukta, sheltered from the sea and thus reasonably calm. Soon, life came back on our good, little Arctica II, people appeared again and chaos was turned back into a cosy home.
The idea to sit the weather out in this rather comfortable position was quickly welcomed by everyone. We could also expect that the ice, which according to all available information couldn’t be more than a relatively thin stripe, should be spread by the strong wind, so a passage to the south cape should be possible in the near future. So the next thing to do was a good dinner, an enjoyable social evening and a good, long night’s sleep J
Photo Hassensteinbukta – 02. August 2015
The wide tundra of southwestern Edgeøya is an arctic dream, so of course we went out this morning to explore a bit, and our little sunday morning walk turned out to last a good couple of hours. The tundra has an amazing display of colours, it covers a lowland of rolling hills on basalt rock. Altogether, this attracts the eye and the attention without any limitation. The wide flat-topped mountains in the distance give the scenery the character that is so typical for southeastern Spitsbergen. A wild, beautiful arctic country. Colourful flowers, the polar willow is showing the first hints of autumn. A multi-channeled arctic river, a reindeer, old fox traps from times of hunting which are history now since long. A long, silent rest to enjoy the impressions and let the eye wander and the spirit wonder.
Photo Habenichtbukta – 02. August 2015
A second landing in the late afternoon turned out to be a short-lived affair. After a short walk only, we saw a polar bear walking a bit further south. We went back to the ship and left him alone in his kingdom.
More walrusses, more wind, more ice – 07/31 + 08/01/2015
Sat
1 Aug
2015
(31st July – 01st August 2015) – The day started nice and sunny, but soon it turned out to be quite windy, which is not particularly helpful on the rather unprotected shores of Storfjord. Against expectation, we managed a landing on Edgeøya, enjoyed the lovely tundra, the wide landscape, a group of walrusses sunbathing near an old trapper hut, not far from a walrus graveyard where hundreds of their grandgrandparents were slaughtered by whalers and hunters for their ivory, blubber and skin. Now, walrusses are again enjoying their life near the old, bleaching bones. Nature is taking her space again, even if it takes time.
More walrusses, more wind, more ice – 07/31 + 08/01/2015
Assuming that completing a circumnavigation of Spitsbergen would only be a matter of sailing down Storfjord and around the south cape, we set course that way. But the ice field that was shown on the latest ice chart as a rather thin belt of open drift between southern Edgeøya and the east coast of Spitsbergen turned out to be solid, dense pack ice, pushed together by the strong northerly wind. Now we have been trying for more than 12 hours to find a gap in that ice field, and if we don’t find it soon, then we have to turn around and head northwards again, back through Heleysund and Hinlopen Strait … not a very pleasant thought at all, but nature rules. A kingdom for an accurate, up-to-date ice chart and a good weather forecast!
Walrusses, ice and currents – 30th July 2015
Thu
30 Jul
2015
An incredible day. It started quite early in dense fog and with a group of walrusses, who were in good shape and pretty active. It continued in fog and with more and more ice. The ice stayed, the fog went, and so we continued through an extremely pleasant afternoon, cruising under a bright sun through the most beautiful ice, watching seals and birds. Pure high arctic.
Then there was the question if it would be possible to pass through Heleysund. Watching the fields of drift ice, which were getting larger and larger and denser and denser, one would hardly have placed a bet on a successful passage. But wait and see. The current increased, and finally we had reached a point where a return would have been difficult and then even impossible. Unfortunately I can’t send a video at this time (later!), and it is hard to describe this passage. A rollercoaster ride in strong currents, together with a large field of drift ice. The individual ice floes were all drifting here and there and everywhere, pure chaos. Skipper Pål maneouvred frantically, trying not to bump too much into ice, but that was hard to avoid. Luckily, the Arctica II is built to take some beating in the ice. Any other sailing boat with a hull made from any other material than good, strong steel would have been crushed to pieces. The views of the nearby icefloes seemed to indicate a turbulent, but stationary position, a look towards the rocky shores made clear that we were actually drifting with some amazing speed, far beyond the capability of the engine alone.
Gallery Walrusses, ice and currents – 30th July 2015
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Click on thumbnail to open an enlarged version of the specific photo.
Now we are through, a very impressive experience richer, and looking forward to a calm anchorage, a little late evening walk on Barentsøya, and definitely some hours og good sleep.
Lomfjord & Hinlopen – 29th July 2015
Wed
29 Jul
2015
Yes, good weather, that’s what we want and what we need. The wind had largely calmed down and even the sun was coming out at times. So on we went, with sandwiches and thermos bottles, into the tundra and up the mountains. Great views of the landscape near and far, bizarre shapes of weathering snow on the banks of little rivers, ptarmigans and reindeer, flowers and erratic boulders, large valleys with glaciers and moraines. Six hours exactly as we want them.
Photo Faksevagen – 29th Juli 2015 – 1/2
Hinlopen Strait itself, however, is less hospitable, but better than yesterday, less wind. And the lively activity of hundred thousands of Brünich’s guillemots at Alkefjellet is always extremely impressive, also when the sky is grey.
Photo Faksevagen – 29th Juli 2015 – 2/2
Now we are curious about the near future. We have good hopes for less wind, walrusses, a visit to the great ice cap of Nordaustland and drift ice. Enough to be interesting, but not too much, so we may successfully sail into Storfjord, the most important step to turn this trip into a circumnavigation of the main island of Spitsbergen.
Photo Alkefjellet – 29th Juli 2015
Wind & Ice – 28th July 2015
Tue
28 Jul
2015
It is as if someone had pushed a button in the weather system of the far north some days ago. After the calm weeks that we had until mid July, we have now got the second period with strong winds in Spitsbergen. The first one wasn’t much of a bother to us, as we had spent some very enjoyable days in the shelter of inner Kongsfjord, as the reader may remember. Right now, we have heard that a full-grown storm is raging around Sørkapp (the south cape), and sailing boats wait in Longyearbyen for the wind to calm down before they leave.
Last night, the anchor was dragging in Murchisonfjord, Arctica II was vigorously pulling on the chain in the gusts. It was kind of ok until the morning, but it was clear that this was no place to spend more time than necessary. A bay that provides shelter not only from the sea but also from the wind, that would be good now.
Photo Hinlopen – 28th July 2015
Additionally, we have got the information that there is movement in the ice off the eastern tip of Spitsbergen. So far, the passage from southern Hinlopen to Heleysund had been blocked by dense drift ice, but now it seems to be open. This passage is not very long, but currently the crucial bit with regards to a potential circumnavigation of Spitsbergen. Now we are half-way through the voyage, time-wise. If we want to sail around Spitsbergen, then we have to keep an eye on time.
Photo Faksevagen – 28th July 2015
Enough reasons altogether to leave Murchisonfjord and set course southwards in Hinlopen Strait, even if that involves rough sea for a couple of hours. But not for too long. It was nice to walk on solid tundra ground later in Lomfjord.
Murchisonfjord – 27th July 2015
Mon
27 Jul
2015
Inner Murchisonfjord is teasing with its wide-open landscapes, barren but then so rich in detail, and the vicinity of the inland ice. So we went out, equipped with thermos bottles and sandwiches, following little valleys inland. A moon landscape, but so colourful, maybe rather a Mars landscape? Precambrian colours turn some of the hills deeply red. Thanks to the stromatolithes, who initially produced all that free oxygen.
Photo Triodalen – 27th July 2015 – 1/2
Even the rivers seem to hide from the harsh climate sometimes, as they build some beautiful snow bridges and tunnels. Good views of the inland ice, Vestfonna. Only the beginning destruction of a hiking boot keeps us from walking the last bit to the ice. But to appreciate the greatness of a mountain (or ice cap), you have to keep a distance anyway.
Photo Triodalen – 27th July 2015 – 2/2
And seven hours of fresh air don’t leave much to be desired. There is plenty of fresh air today, the air seems to be in a rush. We hide in a small side bay with the boat, trying to get a little bit out of the wind. The ropes are banging against the mast, making a lost of noise, and the anchor is audibly working to keep Arctica II in position. Hopefully the wind goes down a bit.
Photo Fargefjellet – 27th July 2015 – 1/2
Mosselbukta – 26th July 2015
Sun
26 Jul
2015
In inner Mosselbukta, the landscape does not really know if it wants to be land or sea. A number of beaches separate smaller and larger lagoons, peninsulas reach out into the bay, a number of little rivers is running across the tundra. It is nice to hike in this diverse and varied environment. Remains of an old hut show where Russian hunters used to live centuries ago, two graves show that not all of them made it back home.
Photo Mosselbukta – 26th Juli 2015 – 1/3
We found remains of wooden ship wrecks near the shore. Maybe from the catastrophic winter in 1872-73, when the famous Swedish explorer Adolf Erik Nordenskiöld wintered in Mosselbukta? His ship was also forced to winter, as an early winter storm pushed ice into the bay. The ship made it well through the winter, but other ones that were also trapped were crashed and lost. The winter storms can be brutal here, as the immense amounts of driftwood make clear. There are also immense amounts of plastic rubbish, constantly coming in over long distances with sea currents, unfortunately. Mosselbukta is definitely on the list for a clean-up.
But away from the plastic, there is so much beauty on these coasts. Oysterleaf is flowering, protected by some large driftwood logs.
Photo Mosselbukta – 26th Juli 2015 – 2/3
Later in the day: fish soup with fresh, locally caught arctic char, the crossing of 80 degrees, rounding Verlegenhuken and crossing northern Hinlopen Strait towards Nordaustland, something that does involve some rock and roll as there is a bit of wind against us.
Photo Mosselbukta – 26th Juli 2015 – 3/3
Later, Murchisonfjord brought shelter from wind and waves and a lovely late evening walk in the polar desert of Nordaustland in the most beautiful evening light.
Photo Kvalrosshalvoya – 26. Juli 2015
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