Woodfjord / Liefdefjord, Svalbard
Living up to the moniker, Land of the Ice Bear, this area’s large, carnivorous animals were once again spotted today. This morning’s encounter was significantly closer and more dynamic than the others from the trip in that we spotted two bears of different sexes engaged in the same pursuit - food. As shallow waters prevented a close approach from the ship we dropped our entire fleet of zodiacs and, in V-formation, approached these two animals at snail-like speeds, successfully viewing their behavior with hardly a notice from our subjects. Unsure of who made the kill it was obvious that polar bears are not opposed to sharing as both individuals feasted on the same carcass at the same time (most likely a ringed seal) with nothing more than a grunt or two and a little apprehensive pacing from the smaller female.
From marine mammal to marine mammal we left our four legged friends and immediately spotted a lone Minke whale while heading back to the National Geographic Explorer. Lunging from side to side it was in hot pursuit of whatever food it was after and offered a rare chance to see this small, fast cetacean in a relatively predictable pattern as it was shadowed by various gulls who conveniently gave away each successive surfacing.
Back on board: more marine mammals, this time a pod of Beluga whales! Up to eight individuals broke the surface of Liefdefjord’s water as we cruised deeper into this arm of Woodfjorden, one of Svalbard’s most impressive glaciological wonders. Less approachable than the two previous species we gave them a wide berth and continued towards the Monacobreen glacier, the source of Liefdefjord’s impressive topography.
Once nestled well into protected waters we launched our Zodiacs and kayaks to explore the surroundings. Dappled with sunbursts and shimmering glacial ice sculptures, the afternoon tours, if plotted, would no doubt have taken on the appearance of a complex Celtic knot as we darted from blue ice sculpture to blue ice sculpture. Each uniquely weathered piece of age old ice told a story of temperature change, wind conditions, tides and balance.
Had time allowed I’m sure we would have all been content on drifting from bobbing crystal to bobbing crystal- at least until the day’s incredible weather gave way to something less agreeable!
