We dedicated our third day in Svalbard to explore seldom visited Wijdefjord. Wijdefjord stretches 108 kilometers southwards into Spitsbergen, the largest island in Svalbard, and is the longest fjord of the entire archipelago.
Our morning landing was in the southwest corner of this long fjord, a place known as Overgangshytta where we got to experience everything high Arctic tundra has to offer. At least 12 species of flowering plants painted the barren looking landscape with purple, pink, yellow, and white colors. We had a chance to approach grazing Svalbard reindeer while enjoying beautiful songs of snow buntings. We even sighted a few pink-footed geese in flight.
After lunch, Captain Martin and the bridge team decided to reposition National Geographic Resolution near the glacier Mittag-Lefflerbreen, in a place no other ship has ever sailed before. It was a spectacle to be on the bridge and watch this highly experienced team masterfully navigate our vessel. A one-and-a-half-hour-long Zodiac cruise in the vicinity of the glacier was the cherry on top. We admired this massive glacier and witnessed several small calvings.
