Hornsund
After leaving Longyearben last night, the Endeavour ventured south along the west coast of Spitsbergen. This morning we awoke to the views of ice in Hornsund, the last major bay along the coast before rounding the southern corner and heading east. The smaller fjords that feed glaciers into the bay are aligned north-south as major faults that help to shape the islands and have weakened the rock strata to the point that small streams in pre-glacial times eroded there way into the bedrock. During the ice age, the stream valleys were filled with ice that used the low topography to increase the rate and amount of rock eroded over the millennia.
The first of these fjords we visited was Samarinvagen where, after some briefings in the lounge, we boarded our Zodiac boats for a cruise amongst the ice and near the face of the glacier. Numerous sea birds including, arctic terns, kittiwakes, little auks, and black guillemots were seen during the cruise as they took advantage of calving ice and went after small fish and crustaceans. A single ringed seal was seen on one piece of ice. The ringed seal is one of the main prey items of the polar bear.
After the Zodiacs had been picked up by the ship, a hot lunch awaited us in the dining room. The Endeavour repositioned to Burgerbukta, on the north side of Hornsund, where we were going to do some hikes ashore, however, the fog set in so the ship was taken farther into the fjord and our kayaks were put in the water for some silent trips through the ice. Zodiac cruises were again offered with more great views of blue icebergs, bergy bits, growlers, and brash ice. A lone bearded seal lay on a flat bit of ice and allowed a pretty close view as the ship sat in the misty background.
