July 2023

MORE WALRUS? Today we made the long haul down through the Forlandsundet, that beautiful mountain and glacier lined channel between Kongsfjorden and Isfjorden. On [...]

ANOTHER WHALING SITE Another whaling site, Hamburgbukta ended up being a delightful, keyhole bay, named after the city of Hamburg. The Germans, or their [...]

MAGDALENEFJORDEN – A POPULAR DESTINATION Our destination for the night was Trinityhamna in the Magdalenefjorden, just a short hop down the outside of Spitsbergen [...]

ONE LAST MORNING WITH THE POLAR BEAR Our plan for this morning had been to hang out with the bear for a bit longer [...]

OUR ASPIRATIONAL DESTINATION Getting to Smeerenburg had been our ultimate goal in Svalbard. It is located in the far north west of the archipelago [...]

Well, while all sorts of historical trash was lying around at the western end of the bay, something far more gripping was happening at [...]

VIRGOHAMNA In 1912, Fridjof Nansen, one of Norways most renowned polar explorers, visited Virgohamna and described it as "...a desolate, dismal place...a disagreeable bay...". [...]

THE MOST NORTHERLY (AND DUTCH) WHALING STATION The next morning was clear and bright so we headed off to Ytre Norskøya. This was once [...]

A FOGGY DAY We awoke to a dark grey day. A thick, wet fog lay over us. The shore, only 100m away, loomed darkly [...]

SITTING OUT A GALE We had spent two days at Kobbefjorden, sitting out a gale from the northwest. The anchorage appeared to be well [...]