Trip Report by Tony Marr, Tour Leader

Summary

WildWings’ seventh trip to Spitsbergen continued our run of highly successful and enjoyable expeditions to this remote part of the high Arctic. This year the pack ice was well north of the Svalbard Archipelago, allowing us to visit the beautiful fjords, glaciers and islands along the north coast, rich in wildlife. A cruise along the edge of the pack ice took us far to the north where we reached 81 degrees latitude, only 540 miles from the North Pole. The WildWings group of 19, our largest yet, joined the ice-strengthened M.V. Professor Molchanov with a full complement of 52 passengers and an Expedition Team led by Olle Carlsson from Sweden, an extremely able, experienced and knowledgeable Expedition Leader. Although we had just under seven days on board ship, our expedition covered 933 nautical miles in the spectacular Arctic wilderness where the continuous daylight and the midnight sun made our one week seem more like two.

In lovely mostly sunny, still weather, we encountered virtually all the mammals, cetaceans and birds we had hoped to see. Top of the wish-list is always Polar Bear, of which we found ten; Walruses totalled 93 with several large gatherings; we had a day of Arctic Foxes, which included an entertaining family party; single Minke and Beluga Whales; 20 Bearded and 7 Ringed Seals; and 20 Svalbard Reindeer. Special birds included King Eider (although unusually only two); Ptarmigan (but only one); Grey Phalarope (again, only one); 3 Sabine’s Gulls together; up to 5 Ivory Gulls together; Brunnich’s Guillemots and Little Auks in their tens of thousands; and breeding Snow Buntings everywhere. All this was against a background of spectacular snow-capped mountains, huge glaciers and deep fjords, with several passages through the pack-ice as a very special and truly unforgettable experience.


Daily diary

Sunday 4 July

We met up at London’s Heathrow Airport for our afternoon flight to Oslo, where there was no delay in joining the flight north to Longyearbyen, capital of Svalbard which we reached just under three hours later. We came in over a cloudy archipelago, with the peaks of the pointed mountains of West Spitsbergen showing above the clouds which filled the fjords. A coach took us into town to our guesthouse, where we made our way to bed in broad daylight and, even at the hour of 2.00 am, warm sunshine.

Monday 5 July

Early risers found a Ptarmigan on the hills above the guesthouse, where Glaucous Gulls, Little Auks and Snow Buntings were quickly on the bird list. We had booked a coach to take us back to the airport to look for birds, especially Grey Phalaropes, around the nearby lagoons. In drizzle which steadily turned to fairly heavy and persistent rain, we tried to watch the numerous birds present, but ended up sheltering in a small hut. Our Tour Leader had flight views of a Grey Phalarope although no-one else saw it, but everyone had good telescope views of a drake King Eider on the sea, where our first Brunnich’s Guillemots, Black Guillemots, Puffins (of the large local race naumanni) and Long-tailed Ducks were to be seen. Around the lagoons were Purple Sandpipers, Arctic Terns breeding (and fearlessly dive-bombing us as we walked along the track), Common Eider and Long-tailed Ducks, Barnacle Geese, Kittiwakes and more Glaucous Gulls. A pair of Snow Buntings had a nest in a box on a nearby building and an Arctic Skua caused consternation when it flew over the nesting terns.

After lunch, some sightseeing and shopping and a walk along the shore, we joined the Professor Molchanov at 4.00 pm. After familiarising ourselves with the ship, and attending the necessary introductory briefings and lifeboat and safety drills, we set sail on a damp and drizzly evening, heading out in a north-westerly direction for our overnight voyage to northern Spitsbergen. Most people took advantage of the unfriendly weather to go to bed early for some much-needed sleep, after the short night which had followed our arrival.

Tuesday 6 July

The 7.00 am wake-up call found us in the beautiful Magdalena Fjord, with the early-morning fog being burned off by the sun’s warmth. We thought that 8 degrees C was a respectable temperature at these latitudes so early in the day. After a hearty breakfast, we landed by Zodiac on the south shore for a longish walk towards a lovely glacier. We saw that we were under the watchful eye of the Svalbard Environmental Police who have a hut and boats there to monitor the movements and activities of the various cruise ships which enter the fjord. It is one of the deepest and most attractive, and while we were present, two large liners arrived separately, dwarfing our small vessel.

On shore we encountered a pair of obviously-breeding Arctic Skuas and several Arctic Terns and Snow Buntings, with the eerie, high-pitched calls of flocks of Little Auks echoing from the mountainside above. Along the fjord edges were groups of Barnacle and Pinkfooted Geese, Common Eider and Long-tailed Duck, and Black and Brunnich’s Guillemots. Two Bearded and five Ringed Seals were on the ice in front of another glacier as we sailed away from the fjord after an enjoyable introduction to Spitsbergen wildlife.

After lunch we had arranged to make a landing on Fuglesongen, an island renowned for its accessible colony of breeding Little Auks. However, an unexpected problem arose. Our Expedition Leader received a radio message from his opposite number on another ship in the vicinity, the M.V.Grigoriy Mikheev, to say that they had met a Polar Bear swimming ashore when they were already on the island. A warning rifle shot into the air had succeeded in persuading the bear to return to the sea, but we were all asked to scan the shore very thoroughly before we landed in our Zodiacs. In the event there were no further problems, but it highlighted for us the risks and dangers of travel in this remote and wild area, and the need to be ever-cautious.

The visit was an exhilarating experience for us, sitting quietly in the sunshine among the rocks and boulders as flock after flock of these tiny birds came whirring in from the sea and settled close to us. Every now and again a Glaucous Gull, their most-feared enemy, would pass over, striking terror into the little birds and sending them scattering away back to sea, squeaking and cackling as they did so. Even the non-birders among us were captivated by these cute little black-and-white seabirds, with their banshee-like calls and confiding nature.

During dinner our Expedition Leader announced that we would be making a detour during our evening sailing along the north coast, to visit another legendary site, the isolated atoll-shaped island of Moffen where Walruses haul out and Sabine’s Gulls and Pale-bellied Brent Geese are found - with the occasional Polar Bear. True to prediction, our approach from the south-west revealed two groups of Walrus at their usual location at one end of the island, where three Sabine’s Gulls were feeding along and on the shore. We then received a radio message from the Mikheev, ahead of us, to tell us that that they had seen a Polar Bear swimming towards Moffen, so we waited in anticipation of perhaps seeing it land on the island. While we waited off the eastern side, three skua species were seen, four Arctic, three Great and a single Long-tailed. Two Pale-bellied Brent Geese were on shore, among hundreds of Common Eiders and dozens of Glaucous Gulls. People began to drift off to bed about midnight, and there were only about a dozen of us still on deck when the Polar Bear eventually arrived at 1.00 am, swimming strongly towards the southern end of the island. In glorious sunshine, even at that hour, it provided a fitting ending to a long and exciting day.

Wednesday 7 July

We awoke this time to a windy, cloudy morning in Hinlopen Strait, where soon the sun emerged and the clouds cleared as we headed south and into our first pack ice, where the wind died away altogether. The experience is unique, with extraordinary-shaped icefloes and icebergs rising from mass of ice which stretches as far as the eye can see. The imagination runs riot with images and impressions. While we were going down for lunch, three Walruses were spotted on a small icefloe, and when we returned to the deck we found that the ship had slowly manoeuvred so close that we could watch them and take pictures from the deck without disturbing them. One was a big male with large tusks, one a darker young animal with short tusks, and the third perhaps a female, being midway in size between the other two. In the ice we found also our first beautiful all-white Ivory Gull (the peace dove of the Arctic), the inevitable Arctic Terns and auks, and a Bearded Seal on the ice.

In the afternoon we enjoyed another new experience, as we Zodiaced in under the 200-metre-high cliffs of Alkefjellet to see this impressive seabird city. Thousands of Brunnich’s Guillemots dominated the scene, nesting on the numerous narrow ledges, cracks and fissures in the cliff-face. Kittiwakes abounded and Glaucous Gulls appeared beside every major group of nesting Guillemots, ready to prey on them or their eggs. One was seen carrying off an egg. A Great and two Arctic Skuas were present, and two Barnacle Geese flew off from high up on the cliffs. Brunnich’s were arriving and departing continuously in huge numbers, many crashing down on to the water and often fighting with each other. It was all noise and action, and very impressive.

After an hour we returned to the ship, raised the anchor and headed back north. Our lucky friends in the Mikheev had seen another Polar Bear, so we joined them in the pack ice and spent a couple of hard-working hours searching, but in vain. We were rewarded by another Ivory Gull and several seals, but no bear this time. And so to bed...

Thursday 8 July

We passed two swimming Walrus in the early morning fog as we arrived at Phippsoya, the most northerly accessible island in Spitsbergen, just as the sun began to come through. There was momentary confusion at our briefing during breakfast when ‘Arctic fogs’ were mentioned, and thought to be ‘Arctic Fox‘! From the ship we could see a reddish-brown heap on the shore, clearly Walrus hauled out, so on landing we carefully, slowly and silently made our way towards them. To our delight, they did not realise we were there, as we approached from downwind, and we were able to watch them from very close before they woke up and saw us. The heap turned out to contain a surprising seven animals, so tightly do they pack. As the fog swirled over the island, and the sun came and went, we made our way through deep snow and across a rocky hillside for an invigorating walk. Few birds were to be seen on this far-flung island, and there was a feeling of being in a really remote location. It was back to the ship for lunch, and then we headed off north-eastwards towards more pack ice.

The afternoon was spent working our way along the edge of the ice, most of which lay in an unusual south-to-north position, scanning for Polar Bears. Despite finding four Ivory Gulls, single Bearded and Ringed Seals, and the inevitable Northern Fulmars, Glaucous Gulls, Kittiwakes, Arctic Skuas, Arctic Terns and auks, no ice bears appeared. A compensation was to take the ship even further north, as far as 81 degrees of latitude, an achievement which was celebrated with suitable liquid refreshment. At this point there was nothing but ice and water between us and the North Pole, now only some 540 miles to the north.

As we went down for dinner, the ship was heading back south-westwards and towards our destination for the following day, Woodfjorden, with a panoramic view of the northernmost group of islands and the whole north coast of Spitsbergen spread across the horizon.

Friday 9 July

Many of us were up on the bridge and the deck early, tipped off that there was a good chance of finding Polar Bears as we moved out of Woodfjorden and into Liefdefjorden and close to its islands. At 6.45 am the prediction came true, when our Expedition Leader woke everyone else to say that four Polar Bears were on shore ahead of the ship, a female with two cubs and a single one. Soon everyone was on the bridge and decks to see them. Immediately after breakfast another female with two cubs was seen as we sailed as close to the islands as the shallow water would allow. Seven Polar Bears already - what a start to a beautiful sunny day!

As we approached the Monaco Glacier we launched the Zodiacs for a cruise around more of the islands. A Red-throated Diver flew over, a lovely all-white Ivory Gull sat imperiously on top of an icefloe providing marvellous photographic opportunities, and we spotted a pair of Pinkfooted Geese with two very small goslings on the rocky shore. Suddenly the radios crackled into life - message from the bridge - Polar Bear floating close past the ship on an icefloe... The Zodiac engines roared into life and we sped back towards the ship.

Too late - the bear must have heard us coming, and was by now on shore and walking away up the beach. Tantalising views were had from the water, but much closer than the earlier sightings. We them moved towards the huge glacier, in front of which were feeding thousands of Kittiwakes, dozens of Glaucous Gulls and a remarkable flock of five Ivory Gulls together. And a further surprise - a nice cream-coloured Beluga Whale was spotted, just as we began to head back for lunch. Quite a morning.

We enjoyed a tundra walk in the afternoon, where beautiful flowers carpeted the ground and both Arctic Skuas and Purple Sandpipers led us away from their nests with clever broken wing tricks, looking as though they were seriously injured. Five Reindeer were seen at close range, plus 50 more distant Pink-footed Geese and several Snow Buntings. As we returned to the ship and headed back up the fjord, we refound all seven of the morning’s Polar Bears, very conspicuous white shapes hunting along or near the shore.

Saturday 10 July

This was yet another excellent day, full of adventures and memorable experiences. We started at the 14 July Glacier with a Zodiac cruise along the low cliffs with its easily-viewed colony of Brunnich’s Guillemots. A Razorbill was found among them, and some 15 Puffins. An Arctic Fox was hunting along the low cliffs and the beach and gave us all very good views. High above were thousands of noisy Kittiwakes and at the foot of the highest cliffs a group of Pinkfooted Geese with some small goslings. Wise parent Barnacle Geese took their young into the water to avoid the fox. In superb calm, sunny conditions, we cruised along the face of the glacier, with 30 Common Eiders, 30 Long-tailed Ducks and a colony of over 500 Arctic Terns to be seen. The morning was completed with two Bearded Seals swimming near the glacier and a trio of handsome Reindeer running along the hillside.

The afternoon landing was at Ny Alesund, the northernmost town in the world, which is always a rewarding wildlife experience. The presence of a pair of Arctic Foxes with seven cubs, in a den under one of the wooden houses, was a new problem, and we were told had already led to a reduction in the breeding success of Common Eiders, Barnacle Geese and other ground-nesting birds. We saw the extraordinary spectacle of a group of Barnacles with their small goslings forming a tight circle when an adult fox approached them; the corral appeared to work and the fox moved on. A pair of Red-throated Divers were on their usual pool, where several Purple Sandpipers were joined by a Ringed Plover and a very unusual Red Knot, the first seen on a WildWings Spitsbergen tour. Long-tailed Ducks were seen on the pools; an Ivory Gull at the regular site by the dog compound; and a drake King Eider flew past.

On our return to the ship we were told more about the ‘Surprise Dinner’ advertised on the notice board. It was to be a barbecue on the aft deck in front of a glacier! In such spectacular surroundings, with some ten other glaciers visible at any one time, we were out in the warm sunshine and still air to savour a superb BBQ prepared by our ever-dependable chefs. Wildlife was temporarily forgotten as we ate, drank and danced the night away until the ship raised the anchor and headed back out of the fjord towards Ny Alesund. Fortunately some people remained sober and awake enough to spot a Polar Bear slowly walking across a very green hillside on one of the islands, very conspicuous in the bright midnight sun. Another fitting end to another wonderful day...

Sunday 11 July

With perhaps a few sore heads, there was a slow start to this further warm, still, sunny day as we made our way through Forlandsundet and into St. John’s Fjord. This was not to be a day for any new wildlife sightings, but to enjoy a long and steep climb up some hills to appreciate the spectacular view across two big glaciers on this most perfect of days. We found droppings and feathers of Ptarmigan, but no bird, and lovely flowers and plants. On our return to the ship we made a slight detour to approach some Bearded Seals, one of which allowed us to take pictures from very close range.

As we sailed back towards Longyearbyen and the end of the trip, we crossed the final stretch of fjord on a flat calm sea and in warm sunshine late in the evening. Hundreds of Brunnich’s Guillemots and Little Auks arose from the water as we approached and whirred off into the distance. The sun shone down from a clear blue sky against a dramatic backdrop of snow-covered mountains. It was hard to believe that we were well north of the Arctic Circle. Most of us had gone to bed well before we came into port around midnight.

Monday 12 July

We were awoken by a call at 2.15 am and after a minimal breakfast (how much can anyone eat at that hour?) taken ashore on our last Zodiac journey at 3.00 am. Coach to the airport, 4.40 am flight to Oslo, a three hour wait and then the flight to Heathrow. We landed on time, our luggage was waiting for us on the carousel, goodbyes were said, and, very suddenly, it was all over. A perfect trip. It really would have been very hard to better.

Conclusion

With punctual, reliable flights, and a comfortable, well-run ship, our group found their expectations more than met. The beauty and tranquillity of the high Arctic, with its unique, profuse and superbly-adapted wildlife, has a huge impact on those who travel to these northerly latitudes. Time and time again our participants vow to return, and on this trip one person did - after a gap of only two years. He was not disappointed, as every trip to Spitsbergen is different. For anyone with an interest in wild places and wild life, there are few more impressive destinations in the world.