Bellsund, Svalbard
Endeavour cruised overnight around the south end of the island of Spitsbergen, and northward on the west side to the fjord known as Bellsund. Turning slowly into it because of dense fog, which added a mystical component to the isolation and remoteness of this archipelago, the ship arrived at a location in the inner fjord where the opportunity arose for two activities on our last day of the expedition – a choice of long, medium, or short walks, and kayaking. The water was close to flat (a fjord ‘lake’), with little or no breeze, and the fog dissipated sufficiently to allow a shore excursion, following the customary check by staff for polar bears. The terrain was irregular, with rocky crags, dips in topography, and other possible hiding places for bears, but after the all-clear was given for landing, walkers came ashore while kayakers went to a location near the ship to start their exercise. In a matter of minutes, staff located reindeer and Arctic fox on the moss-covered hillside. We realized that we were not the first to traverse this site, when we saw a rock cairn built on the opposite side of the meadow from our landing beach. The fog level was such that the lower part of the high cliffs was visible, but not the upper part where all the bird ‘chatter’ was coming from. Nevertheless, we could see numerous birds flying, including the ever-present kittiwake, guillemot, and glaucous gull, for example. On the ground, snow buntings entertained us with their short flights and hops close to the ground while foraging for food. Geese flew overhead, and a harbor seal poked its head out of the water to watch these unusual objects from a tour ship. Polar bear scat was observed on the short walk, reminding us that we must always be on bear alert on Svalbard. Vegetation was similar to that we found in other locations on the itinerary, including purple saxifrage and moss campion. A thick carpet of moss covered most of the walking area, very spongy at this time of year because of the thawing active layer of permafrost. Because the ground under it does not thaw in the summer, but remains permanently frozen, melt water above it has no place to go except to drain slowly through the upper, thawed layer down to the beaches. An Arctic fox was not only spotted, but it was observed to have an orange tag on its left ear, an indication that someone is studying this animal, information that will be relayed to appropriate individuals at Longyearbyen.
Given perfect conditions for it, kayaking was very popular, with kayakers staying close to shore to enjoy the view of this spectacular scenery of high, rocky cliffs, and to see an Arctic fox scampering along the shore. Following kayaking, an opportunity was announced for ‘swimming’ for anyone so inclined, and indeed there were interested guests. Perhaps the lack of a breeze and the shallow water made it attractive, as well as the opportunity to take a dip in the Arctic at about 77ºN latitude. Brrr!!
During lunch, the ship moved to a different part of Bellsund, where we searched for an appropriate location for our final outside activity for the expedition, a Zodiac cruise in a scenic and protected area. Although the conditions consisted of dense fog, Zodiacs were launched and we went off in the direction of a bay with a large glacier at the head of it, although we didn’t know it at the time. A hunter’s shack was passed on the end of a small peninsula, and on turning around it, the fog lifted and the view became more magnificent all the time. As we proceeded further toward the visible front of the glacier, we could see reindeer on the hillsides, numerous ringside seals on ‘rotten’ sea ice in front of the glacier (see photo), and spectacular angular peaks all around the horizon in back of the glacier. It was not an easy thing to do, but eventually we had used up our time, and it was time to return to the ship, now in the fog, but found by a combination of ‘dead-reckoning’ and radar targets carried on each Zodiac, a vital and useful safety measure for our expedition travel.
Endeavour cruised overnight around the south end of the island of Spitsbergen, and northward on the west side to the fjord known as Bellsund. Turning slowly into it because of dense fog, which added a mystical component to the isolation and remoteness of this archipelago, the ship arrived at a location in the inner fjord where the opportunity arose for two activities on our last day of the expedition – a choice of long, medium, or short walks, and kayaking. The water was close to flat (a fjord ‘lake’), with little or no breeze, and the fog dissipated sufficiently to allow a shore excursion, following the customary check by staff for polar bears. The terrain was irregular, with rocky crags, dips in topography, and other possible hiding places for bears, but after the all-clear was given for landing, walkers came ashore while kayakers went to a location near the ship to start their exercise. In a matter of minutes, staff located reindeer and Arctic fox on the moss-covered hillside. We realized that we were not the first to traverse this site, when we saw a rock cairn built on the opposite side of the meadow from our landing beach. The fog level was such that the lower part of the high cliffs was visible, but not the upper part where all the bird ‘chatter’ was coming from. Nevertheless, we could see numerous birds flying, including the ever-present kittiwake, guillemot, and glaucous gull, for example. On the ground, snow buntings entertained us with their short flights and hops close to the ground while foraging for food. Geese flew overhead, and a harbor seal poked its head out of the water to watch these unusual objects from a tour ship. Polar bear scat was observed on the short walk, reminding us that we must always be on bear alert on Svalbard. Vegetation was similar to that we found in other locations on the itinerary, including purple saxifrage and moss campion. A thick carpet of moss covered most of the walking area, very spongy at this time of year because of the thawing active layer of permafrost. Because the ground under it does not thaw in the summer, but remains permanently frozen, melt water above it has no place to go except to drain slowly through the upper, thawed layer down to the beaches. An Arctic fox was not only spotted, but it was observed to have an orange tag on its left ear, an indication that someone is studying this animal, information that will be relayed to appropriate individuals at Longyearbyen.
Given perfect conditions for it, kayaking was very popular, with kayakers staying close to shore to enjoy the view of this spectacular scenery of high, rocky cliffs, and to see an Arctic fox scampering along the shore. Following kayaking, an opportunity was announced for ‘swimming’ for anyone so inclined, and indeed there were interested guests. Perhaps the lack of a breeze and the shallow water made it attractive, as well as the opportunity to take a dip in the Arctic at about 77ºN latitude. Brrr!!
During lunch, the ship moved to a different part of Bellsund, where we searched for an appropriate location for our final outside activity for the expedition, a Zodiac cruise in a scenic and protected area. Although the conditions consisted of dense fog, Zodiacs were launched and we went off in the direction of a bay with a large glacier at the head of it, although we didn’t know it at the time. A hunter’s shack was passed on the end of a small peninsula, and on turning around it, the fog lifted and the view became more magnificent all the time. As we proceeded further toward the visible front of the glacier, we could see reindeer on the hillsides, numerous ringside seals on ‘rotten’ sea ice in front of the glacier (see photo), and spectacular angular peaks all around the horizon in back of the glacier. It was not an easy thing to do, but eventually we had used up our time, and it was time to return to the ship, now in the fog, but found by a combination of ‘dead-reckoning’ and radar targets carried on each Zodiac, a vital and useful safety measure for our expedition travel.
