Nordfjorden / Treana
Think of Norway. Think of all the things that come to mind when you envision this country and what stands out? (Besides trolls of course.) For me it’s fjords and, as such, we were in the heart of Norway today. Winding our way through seemingly dead-end waterways our morning took us from the larger, wider fjord of Melfjord into the steep and comparatively narrow fjord of Nordfjorden. Constricting and widening like a clogged artery this fjord system terminated in an amphitheater of rock. Gneiss rock. This quiet little corner of Norway provided protection from the wind, calm, deep waters, cascading waterfalls, birds, glaciers, and seals. Striking out for the hills groups bush-whacked their way through young birch towards the back of the valley while kayaks and Zodiacs zigzagged down-fjord straining their necks to accommodate the sheer, glacially polished walls. Overhead a pair of White-tailed sea eagles soared from perch to perch, while at water level common seals periscoped up just high enough to train a pair of dark black eyes on us for a second before re-submerging. For hours we explored this valley of rock, ice, and water and found a few of its residents in the process.
Exiting Nordfjorded our northbound voyage towards Svalbard took a slight detour as we backtracked a bit to cross the Arctic Circle for the second time today. Headed south en route for an offshore archipelago our sights were set on an evening ashore to linger awhile at 66 degrees 33 minutes north latitude. One of over a thousand islands making up the “Island Kingdom on the Arctic Circle” the island of Treana is a dot on the map but with the distinction of sitting upon the Arctic Circle proper. Our post-dinner outing involved hikes through this charming little fishing village with stops at the islands church, stone memorial to said latitude and metallic globe depicting Treana’s location at this important geographical delineator. From this latitude onwards those of us aboard the National Geographic Explorer will know nothing of darkness. It is at this location where, on the summer solstice (21 days from now) the sun will not set north of 66 degrees 33 minutes. Since we will cruise well north of this location during the night we should be north of the setting sun ourselves even though tomorrow is only June 1st.
It’s all daylight from here and our hopes are high that there will be much to see with these favorable solar conditions!
