Vavilov boat trip summary

Tuesday 26 Jul
Embarked on the Akademic Sergio Vavilov after much juggling of ship and zodiacs as the harbour was full of floating ice - eventually the previous occupant left the dock and we got on with dry feet and dignity intact. Sailed into the evening sun.
Wednesday 27 Jul
Morning taken up with lifeboat drills and other procedurial matters. Afternoon found us at Ny Alesund - northern most settlement in Svalbard. Now used as a scientific research base but has a long history of involvement in mining (coal), whaling and exploration.
Thursday 28 Jul
Morning trip was a zodiac cruise in Holmiabukta. Signs of polar bear on land but no sighting. Lots of bird life. Into Raudfjorden and the first venture in kayaking for Jack. A seal popped up nearby for a look. The evening gave us our first polar bear sighting but it was too busy resting to show any interest in / for us.
Friday 29 Jul
Into Liedefjord and another polar bear - mother and cub visible from a long distance. Zodiacs and kayaks eventually deployed much closer and bear and 2 cubs eventually obliged with a stroll around their hill. Much excitement and camera action.
Moved onto Andoyane Islands (which is a bird sanctuary) in the afternoon. Then in the evening, moved again to Moffan Island which is a walrus sanctuary and we saw our first tusks (but from some distance). We had also crossed 80 degrees N so there was a suitable celebration of our great achievement (which seems a bit silly when you're standing on a large, ice-strengthened ship!).
Saturday 30 Jul
Further north to Sjuoyane (Seven) Islands and another zodiac cruise - some history at a trapper's hut and lots of spectacular ice floating around.
Onward to the north east to find the edge of the sea ice and when we did, a huge bonus. A polar bear lounging around on the ice - so the Captain pointed the ship into the ice and we crept in to see if we could get a good look at him (as it turned out).

When we got closer the bear decided the smell of all the meat hanging over the rails was too interesting and he got up and sauntered over to the side of the ship to check US out! Really amazing to see one so close in the wild. Beautiful animal and very agile for such a heavy beast - nimbly stepping from one ice floe to the next. Eventually he decided we weren't accessible and we parted company. Camera shutters were allowed to cool down and terrabytes of photos downloaded (megabucks of camera gear on board - some of the lenses look like bazookas).
Sunday 31 Jul
More exploration of the sea ice, checking to see if we could get around Nordaustlandet Northeast Land) but to no avail. Stopped for a zodiac cruise and kayak in the sea ice covered by a thick blanket of fog. Eery but spectacular experience.
Turned back to check out the passage between Spitsbergen and Noraustlandet and we were able to get through (after a couple of days of cruising).
Monday 01 Aug
Into the Hinlopensretet and stopped at Alkefjellet - huge basalt cliffs housing a huge number of bird nests. Zodiac and kayaks deployed to check them out from close quarters. Amazing amount of activity and noise.

Onwards to Torellneset, a rather bleak spit of ground up glacial moraine jutting into the sea but the chosen resting place a large group of very large (in some cases) walrus - all males. They were mainly in one seething mass of blubber with a lot of grunting and shoving - a few peeled off to feed in the nearby sea. Massive tusks but they didn't seem to inflict any damage on each other. Suspect it's a different story at mating time when the girls return.
Tuesday 02 Aug
Adjacent to Brasvellbreen (one of the world's largest icecaps). Another zodiac and kayak exploration of the sea ice - some gorgeous colours.

No sooner back on the ship when we had another polar bear sighting - this time a mother and 2 cubs. Again the ship crept in through the ice and again we got quite close. The family had just a had a seal meal (visible evidence on the ice flow) and they were neither curious nor concerned about us. After a long period of watching them tidy up after their meal and a bit of frolicking about, mum settled down behind a snow bank to give the cubs a feed from the milk bar and we backed away with suitable deference. Another amazing experience of polar bear life in the wild.
Wednesday 03 Aug
Overnight across the open sea to Freemansundet, a narrow passage between Barentsoya and Edgeoya in the SE part of Svalbard. In the morning, a landing at Barentsoya to check out a glacial plain (as in ex glacial) and the hardy plants that live there. Evidence of reindeer but only the most active walkers (us not included) got far enough inland to sight them.
Later in the afternoon at Diskobukta (Duck Bay), another landing and a walk up a canyon featuring a large number of nesting kittiwakes and a single, unconcerned arctic fox who obligingly posed for all and sundry.
Thursday 04 Aug
Overnight a long sea voyage, with the only real swell that we've experienced (but nothing like the Antarctic), to bring us to Hornsund on the southwest corner of Spitsbergen. By late afternoon, we were ready to jump into zodiacs and kayaks for more ice exploring. The kayakers were given a bit of unexpected excitement when a large chunk of ice rolled over nearby, causing some quite large waves.
The another polar bear sighting - near the water on one side of the fjord we were in. It seemed to be just taking a stroll and unlikely to cause us any concern, but then decided to swim across the fjord between the zodiacs and the kayaks. While there seemed to be a safe distance for all concerned, polar bears are surprising quick swimmers and safety is always a high priority for the staff. The kayakers were now well practised at exiting into their zodiac (always on standby in case of difficulty) but were later regaled by their fellow passengers with tales of how expeditiously this particular one occurred!
A number of hardy souls left the ship in the evening for an overnight camping experience (not including your correspondents!). They were rewarded with a close up view of a pod of Beluga whales cruising past their campsite around midnight.
The supporting staff took shifts maintaining a guard against inquisitive (or hungry) polar bears, a precaution reinforced by an unfortunate incident not that far to the north near Longyearbyen (where we started) the following day - a group of young Brits was attacked and one killed by a hungry polar bear (later destroyed unfortunately).
All of our ventures on land (and in the kayaks) have the staff members carrying rifles and flare guns to ward off such eventualities. It's an incongruous but necessary precaution in this beautiful place. At this time of year, the bears generally move north with the ice (and associated seals) but some miss it and are left without their main food source. They get quite hungry and have to scrounge for whatever they can get, even turning vegetarian! Obviously they also become more dangerous around humans.
Friday 05 Aug
Landed at Isbjornhamma in Hornsund on some rough and hilly glacial scree to venture to a nesting site for Little Auks but there were few to be seen - all out feeding presumably.
Up to the eastern of Hornsund for another zodiac and kayak cruise in calmer waters near a huge glacier. This one quite active, calving off several chunks of ice which stir up the water at he base, in turn stirring up the fish and the very noisy and numerous flock of kittiwakes which were feeding on them.
Saturday 06 Aug
We had moved overnight to Bellsund to the north and stopped in Van Keulenfjord. Another landing and kayaking adventure with calm waters and lovely scenery (we must be coming to the end as the spectacular scenery is becoming a bit passe).
In the afternoon, a repeat in another part of Bellsund but the wind had come up and the kayaking was much tougher. However, it was the 10th outing - a new record for the staff leader and we were keen to go. Jack eventually tired and tried to return to the zodiac but the waves caused his bow to get trapped under the front of the zodiac and he was tipped into water when he tried to back out. The first dunking of the trip and the water was seriously cold! Thankfully we were kitted out in full immersion suits. The kayakers all returned to the ship to warm Jack up but then decided, in a gesture of solidarity, that they would all have a "polar plunge" so everyone jumped into the water (Jack for a sceond time). This was done one at a time and they were retrieved very quickly but the cold still comes as a shock!
Sunday 07 Aug
Moved again back to the fjord near Longyearbyen - the last excursion ashore and the last paddle - lots of reindeer and birds. The afternoon was spent cruising around the fjord while all the final housekeeping stuff was done on board. The Captain's dinner (same as the others but with speeches!) was the last occasion.
Monday 08 Aug
Docked, breakfast and disembarked. Into Longyearbyen until our afternoon flight to Oslo and then to Heathrow for the next stage.