Glacier, whale, walrus & bird cliffs

Svalbard is a magical world and so far we have had a very successful season with many magnificent encounters with the wildlife and the unique nature. Please read our blog below from the expedition on board M/S Quest, the 14th – 24th July.

15th July 2014 – Hornsund, Gnålodden, Burgerbukta & Samarinvågen

Weather: Bleu sky, 10°C, East wind 10 m/s.

Our first expedtion day began with humpback whales around the boat. What a lovely start! After that we went with the Zodiacs towards Gnålodden where we enjoyed the bird cliff and some remains of pomor settlements. After Gnålodden we went on to Burgerbukta to visit the glacier. The lights on the glacier was amazing. Smarinvågen was our last stop of the day. This was a Zodiac boat trip towards the glacier, with possible polar bear sightings. We saw our first one! It was far away but still a great start of the trip.

18th July – Torellneset & Alkefjellet

Weather: Cloudy, 7°C, no wind.

In the morning we enjoyed a close encounter with the walruses on the beach. Surrounded of  impressive scenery and beautiful light we took lots of photos. After the walrus sighting some people took a stroll over the beach to get some exercise. In the afternoon we went to Alkefjellet to see the impressive bird cliff with hundred thousands of Brünnich’s guillemots nesting on it. The sun came out and we had an amazing view over the cliff. After this we went further up north and ankered in the Murchisonfjord.