Woodfjord and the North Coast of Spitsbergen
Our evening’s navigation north along the western coast of Spitsbergen from Longyearben brought the National Geographic Explorer to roughly 79° north latitude at 0600hrs. The low hanging blanket of clouds bisected the horizon and rugged coastal topography as we neared the peninsula of Reinsderflya. Shortly before 0700hrs, with a handful of guests and our naturalists scanning the shoreline, a cry went out that a polar bear had been spotted on the shore. After a quick confirmation through the spotting scope, the bridge officer began to reposition the ship and approach the shore to afford a better look at this denison of the Arctic. A call came over the PA from our expedition leader to inform the rest of our shipmates of the sighting. Soon the bridge and decks were bustling with anxious onlookers as we watched this lone giant stroll over the rock strewn tundra in a way only a polar bear can. Not a bad way to start our first day exploring Svalbard and the coast of Spitsbergen.
The remainder of the morning and into the early afternoon was spent navigating south into Woodfjord and to the terminus of Liefdefjord, where we were treated to a spectacular view of the glacier complex at the head of the fjord dominated by Monacobreen. This glacier’s face and its neighboring icy ramparts create a near 180° spectacle of glacial majesty. As the bow filled with eager shutterbugs and onlookers the glacier calved several times in a thunderous fashion, adding to this surreal and beautiful scene. There were hundreds of kittiwakes gathered at the face of the glacier and flocking to each disturbance caused by the calving ice to take advantage of the food brought to the surface from the turmoil. There were also a few ivory gulls, glaucous gulls, skuas and black guillemots rounding out the birdlife near the glaciers. We observed this Arctic scene for a long time before slowly turning away and heading for our next destination. As we did so, the glacier let loose a couple more rounds of “white thunder” as it shed its icy burden.
Making way out of Liefdefjord we navigated back to the main arm of Woodfjord en route to our landing site for the afternoon shore activity. Having had a hardy lunch and having determined the landing site was safe and free of polar bears, we readied the guest for an excursion at a locale called Roospyten. With the low clouds clinging to the adjacent ridges several guest set out on a longer hike up and into the Arctic tundra. Other groups explored near shore habitats and spent time with our photo team capturing the harsh beauty of this landscape. Despite the fact that we’re nearing the end of this short Arctic summer season we were all surprised at the relatively abundant flowering tundra plants, which add dashing bits of color to the green and rocky terrain capped by the grey cloud cover. The longer excursion set out and soon found traces of the wildlife that inhabit this stark place. Tracks of the Svalbard reindeer scat and molted feathers from nesting and foraging pink-footed geese were observed, as well as a few remains of the reindeer: skulls and antlers. It wouldn’t be long until we spotted the living proof of the animal’s presence here. A flock of over 100 pink-footeds suddenly called out and took to the air and next we spotted, nearly a half kilometer away, three male reindeer foraging in the tundra. The wind was in our favor so we decided to approach closer and managed to creep to within 150 meters or so of these superbly adapted animals. What a thrill it was to be in this environment on our first day and to be surrounded by so much of what makes the Arctic such an incredible and unique biome on our planet.
As if the first 12 hours of our day wasn’t enough, the emersion into this ecosystem didn’t stop once the dinner tables were set and the Captain’s cocktail reception was held. Our course was set for Moffen Island, a tiny ring of an island approximately 30km northeast of the mouth of Woodfjord, a protected preserve that serves as a very important resting haul out for walrus. Just as dinner concluded and we had approached the island, to our luck a couple of dozen walrus were hauled out and several other individuals swam near shore. From a distance they appeared as one massive pile of blubber and tusks, but as we approached closer the characteristic, almost comical, forms could be made out. Many of them had lengthy tusks and were likely adult males, while others had shorter tusks and were smaller in stature.
This island has long been a critical slice of walrus habitat and at one time they were extensively hunted here, with evidence of the remains still strewn on the beach. Now a protected marine mammal, they can rest in relative peace and protection from predation. We continued to observe them until just after 11 p.m. and then slowly turned away, leaving them to their much needed rest. Certainly after a day like today our compliment of guests deserved an equally needed rest, for tomorrow’s adventure awaits.
