After the business of yesterday with three landings, this morning we had a chance to sleep in a bit with a 7:30 a.m. breakfast. Through the night, we cruised north and woke up in the northernmost part of the Spitsbergen Island, surrounded by ice. It was perfect habitat for scouting the horizon, looking for wildlife. We spent the day on the boat, carefully navigating around massive pieces of ice that surrounded the ship. Because we had the entire day on board the ship, we heard several presentations put on by both guest lecturers and natural history staff. Along the way, we spotted several seals and many species of birds. All the while, we had beautiful weather and calm waters—perfect conditions for the polar plunge! Those who were brave enough jumped into the freezing waters of the Arctic from a platform. After the plunge, the hotel crew onboard set up a barbeque on the rear deck where we had sausages and beer and great music for the afternoon. It was another wonderful day here in the Arctic!
6/20/2024
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National Geographic Resolution
Kognsfjorden
During the night, National Geographic Resolution traveled quite a distance along the northwestern parts of Spitsbergen and in the morning stopped near Sarstangent, a narrow and long sand spit where walruses often haul out. The scouting from the bridge confirmed their presence. For the morning activity, guests were offered landing with, visiting, and observing the walruses resting on the beach. From time to time some of the walruses, probably well rested, moved away and disappeared in the water, others replaced them, coming from the water and joining the group on the beach. After lunch the ship relocated to a nearby Kongsfjorden, offering a spectacular view of a couple of glaciers with ice-covered mountains in the background. The guests had options of a strenuous hike to the top of a mountain for a panoramic view or Zodiac cruising. Large numbers of blue icebergs were scattered in the fjord. Nests of kittiwakes and glaucous gulls were attached to a concaving igneous cliff, providing an excellent shelter from precipitation. Curious harbor seals could be seen around the fjord. The nearby glacial front represented heavily crevassed ice and calved every few minutes. After dinner the guests had a chance to watch the presentation of the voyage slide show. However, the day was not yet over. Later in the evening a few blue whales were spotted near the ship, a very rare observation around Svalbard.
