80 Degrees North
This morning our goal was to find some large marine mammals. While searching for walrus, which fit the description, near Moffen Island we found the largest of them all, the blue whale. The blue whale has made a slow but steady recovery in the north Atlantic since the whaling days last century. During the past 20 plus years of providing expeditions in the high Arctic, it has only been during the past few years that blue whales have been spotted in the waters around Svalbard.
Later on we had nice views of the walrus that rest and molt on Moffen Island, a low flat sandy island that is protected from landing so that the walrus can remain relatively undisturbed. From there we ventured above 80 degrees north, a first for many expeditioners. The ship then headed south and towards the shore fast ice that fills the bays and fjords of Spitsbergen Island. This is a good area to look for the symbol of the Arctic, the Polar bear. The bears will hunt for seals that haul out on the ice. A lone bear was spotted and then a female with two cubs was seen at a great distance as the captain took the ship into the ice and used it as a temporary sea anchor. The weather was bitterly cold and snow flurries whipped about.
We ended our day as we started; looking for walrus, but this time it was from our fleet of Zodiacs. A small group was hauled out along a snow covered beach in Storfjorden. The bachelor group paid little attention to us while they jousted and poked one another in an attempt to get the prime spot in the scrum.
After dinner we were once again in the ice and would remain there for the evening. The light was brilliant as the sun lowered below the clouds only to rise again and continue the four month long “day” in this part of the world.
