Blogs from Spitsbergen, Svalbard, Europe - page 2

The Svalbard archipelago lies in the Arctic Ocean, about midway between Norway and the North Pole, and belongs to Norway. It comprises all lands between latitude 74° North and latitude 81° North and between longitude 10° East and longitude 35° East. The principal islands are Spitsbergen, Nordaustlandet, Barentsøya, Edgeøya, Kong Karls Land, Prins Karls Forland, and Bjørnøya. Longyearbyen with nearly 2000 inhabitants is the largest populated area on the territory of Svalbard and lies at the southern side of Adventfjorden, stretched out along the Longyearelva River. It is named after American entrepreneur John Munro Longyear (1860-1922), who as head of the Arctic Coal Company founded the town and the neighboring coal mine, the first large mine on Svalbard. Mining is still big business, with the roadsides and mountainsides littered with mines and their equipment, but tourism ... read more

"Come, watch the tones of changing light From starlit days to sun-filled nights. Refreshed from Polar Night's calm sleep, With gentle sunrays, time I keep!" So reads the 24-hour sundial in Longyearbyen, Svalbard, a land of extremes. Located at 79 degrees north, Longyearbyen is well past the Arctic circle and holds claim to several 'northernmost' records. The town of 2000 formerly was dedicated to coal mining and research but tourism is quickly grabbing hold, with several hotels and restaurants opening the past few years. Svalbard is a Norwegian territory and may also be known by the name of Spitsbergen, Svalbard being the name for the archipelago and Spitsbergen the main island. Located only 900 miles from the North Pole, it is used as a staging point for polar expeditions. Although owned by Norway, there is a ... read more

After our departure (Viola and myself) the crew of Dawnbreaker were as follows: Lars - Captain Uno, Urban and Thomas - First mate Eva, Sanna and Pontus - deck hands For the first time since our journey started, Dawnbreaker had a full crew + extras. Dawnbreaker has 5 places to sleep with extra if need be (3 extra), then it's the floor for the rest of the crew. So, I left Lars to look after so many members that to cook and keep everyone happy must of been some kind of miracle. 15th August Sunday Longyearbyn to Pyramiden Everyone on board decides, after getting sleeping arrangements sorted, that it would be nice to go somewhere before the Wedding arrangements which starts tomorrow (Monday) with a rehearsal at the Church for the Bride and Groom. A short ... read more

7th July Saturday Mariaholmen/Bellsund - Longyearbyn Today everyone is up early. We want to visit the Hermit on the Island not far from us. Six in our dinght must look very strange. It’s a fair size boat but six audults is a bit much. We took a short cut to the Hunter/Hermits home. We only just made it, the tide was going out. We knocked on jis door but there was no answer, it wa also bolted so today we were unlucky. We believe he collects feathers from the nests of the Eider ducks who have their young around his area. 11:30 am It’s going to be a long day as we’re going the rest of the way to Longyearbyn. At first we have no wind so sailing turns to motoring. Later in the day ... read more

27th June Wednesday Valvaagen - Tromsoe 10:00 am Not much for Gerd and Jonas to do but gather their belongings and start packing. Tomorrow will be their last hours with us. 8:00 am is their departure time. Everyone was quite relaxed thoughout the journey to Tromsoe. Lunch was fish cakes, all the leftovers from the last couple of days. Tonight everyone wants a bloody steak. It’s been cloudy all day and it’s starting to rain hard just outside of Tromsoe. 17:45 pm On our arrival we see that “Joyant” (Tom and Dorothy) are already here. They arrived around mid-day. First we moored on “Lupus” a large pilot boat. Just as we finished the Harbour Master arrived and said the “Lupus” was on call all today/night, so it was not wise to stay. We moved over ... read more