Along the rocky shores of Karl XII Island and Storøya
Below you can read about an exciting Zodiac adventure along the rocky shores of Storøya and Karl XII Island during the trip Expedition Svalbard with Sea Endurance 12 - 22 July.
16th of July 2018
Already before breakfast can we see the spectacular shape of Karl XII Island appear through the mist. As we set anchor a few hundred meters from the shore line there are two polar bears walking along the shore, apparently just as excited about us as we were about them. After breakfast, we put our Zodiacs into the water but because of the polar bears without any landing as earlier planned. At the very start of our Zodiac cruise we spot a group of walruses in the water as well. The mist vanishes and reappears, but we manage to circumnavigate the island. We see more walruses and altogether four polar bears along the rocky shoreline.
After lunch, we head east towards Storøya, which despite its name is quite small. As we approach the island we once again spot polar bears on the shore, and our landing once again must be cancelled. Instead we go for a Zodiac cruise along the coast to watch a couple of walruses and a beautiful red phalarope.
Destinations
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Since 1999, we have taken travellers on once-in-a-lifetime trips to Svalbard. From May to September our three small expedition ships, carrying only 12 and 50 passengers, explore this magnificent Arctic archipelago. Unpredictability and flexibility are the main keywords when you travel with PolarQuest as the exact route depends on weather, ice conditions and wildlife encounters. Sometimes you might be woken up in the middle of the night if a polar bear has been spotted on the ice.