I last left off on day 5 of our adventure with Polarquest, navigating ice floats to see an incredible glacier front called Bråsvellbreen. This trip was otherworldly and our experiences varied so much day by day. I have so many photos to share that I had to make this a two part blog post. Here is part 1 of our Svalbard trip if you haven’t seen it yet.

The best time to see Svalbard is in summer, from June through September. Seeing Svalbard’s polar landscape is hands down something that should be on your bucket list. This part of the world is changing so rapidly due to the climate crisis. I’ve never felt more inspired or involved from being here first hand. If you’ve never been on a trip like this before (I hadn’t), you’re truly in for one of the most incredible experiences!

Polarquest Website  |  Link to Book

Mention ‘Find Us Lost’ when booking for $300 off any Polarquest Svalbard Expedition in 2020 and 2021. 

Note this offer cannot be combined with any other Polarquest offer and is exclusive to our readers.

Space fills up quickly, so if you’re considering it, book now for this upcoming summer. Mention ‘Find Us Lost’ for $300 off Expedition Svalbard (this 10 day trip). We visited Svalbard in mid-August, and the animal sightings were apparently the best of the season.

Preset Collections used in this blog post: Winter Collection.

Day 5

After a morning at Bråsvellbreen, we made our way to Torellneset for an afternoon hike. We were immediately greeted by a group of walruses who swam up to us, curious about our group. Our expedition leaders gave us three options for hikes, Jacob and I were feeling up for a more active afternoon so we opted for the ‘long walk’ group. I loved having the choice each day since you always see something different. Sometimes we’d rather explore the area we landed, so the short or medium walk was perfect.

The long walk took us over a series of hills, finally reaching an expansive glacier into the sea. To get down we actually had to slide down the final hill! From there, we were literally able to walk up and touch the edge of the glacier where it met the sand. Such a breathtaking experience.

Torellneset

Our boat picked us up here for dinner and continued on to Alkefjellet. We knew there was an additional outing this evening to see the nearby bird cliffs. Our first inclination was to skip it as this day was particularly long, but remembering what our guides said (“you never know what you’ll see”), we changed and hopped on the zodiac.

I can’t imagine skipping this evening – it ended up being our favorite! As we were approaching the cliffs it didn’t even register immediately that we were seeing birds; there were so many. This area is home to hundreds of thousands of black guillemots, which breed their young here before taking off to other parts of Svalbard. Their offspring return to the exact same square foot of cliffside to do the same with their own mate each year. Being witness to it felt like being transported into a nature documentary. This whole place was at a scale your mind can’t even comprehend.

Alkefjellet Bird Cliffs

Day 6

At this point we were more than halfway through the trip, but we had yet to walk on an ice float. Of course, our guides weren’t leaving any experience out! A small group of us boarded a zodiac out to a series of ice floats scattered in the middle of the ocean. It felt extra cold this day, so the hot chocolate came with. It was surreal standing in the middle of the sea with only water as far as we could see.

After lunch we opted to go on the longer hike for our next landing at Hamilton Bukta. The views at the top overlooked a bay with snow-covered mountain landscapes. Our evening view was just as incredible: the boat cruised along ice walls in front of the brightest blue water we’d ever seen.

Ice Floats in the Arctic Ocean

Hamilton Bukta

Day 7

The itinerary for our seventh day was probably the most tame of the trip. Per the ship’s plan, we docked at Virgohamna, the location of a historical site and prior whaling station where numerous adventurers departed to explore the arctic. The location is now set up as an outdoor museum, with old materials and buildings left intact. We were wandering for about 20 minutes and chatting with our guide when she stopped suddenly: a bear was right in front of us, coming over a hill.

Though we’d seen a number of polar bears at this point, we always viewed them at a distance from our zodiac. Polar bears aren’t necessarily aggressive towards humans. Like any wild animals however, they’re a threat and completely unpredictable (not to mention, huge). Jacob and I turned around and immediately made our way towards our zodiac boat calmly but as quickly as we could, telling others on the way that a polar bear had been spotted.

When we made it to our boat, people’s nerves were definitely on edge. Jacob and I grabbed the anchor and threw it in our zodiac, while others were loading in. Our guide wrangled the others and items were grabbed and thrown in boats. I paused when we were about to push off and looked up, to see the polar bear standing at the top of the hill we’d just walked down, calmly observing us. It was definitely one of those moments that will be committed to my memory forever.

We followed the bear from our boat at a safe distance after we pulled away from shore. He was one of the ‘skinnier’ bears we had seen, meaning he was more at risk. Polarquest reports all bear sightings back to a team in Svalbard which monitors wildlife health. Of course, global warming has taken a toll on wildlife which is why it’s more important than ever to educate ourselves and also be mindful of lowering our impact (note Polarquest offsets all carbon emissions from their trips).

After he disappeared over the rocks, we made our way to Smeerenburg, passing some seals bathing in the sun. We had just returned back to the ship for the afternoon when we caught word that another polar bear was spotted near the shore. Back to the zodiac boat we went – we couldn’t miss him!

Polar Bear in Virgohamna

Polar Bear Sighting in Smeerenburg

After the excitement of the morning, we kept the afternoon low key. Jacob flew our drone and I stayed back at the boat to relax. And for good reason: this evening we had the option of taking the polar plunge – donning a swimsuit and jumping into the arctic water!

I’m never one to turn down a bucket list item, so before I could think twice, I had my swimsuit and robe on and was in line to make the jump. The team was blasting music and had vodka shots ready to go. A harness was wrapped around my waist (just in case I pass out from the cold..) and in less than 5 seconds I was in the water. Needless to say it was the coldest water I’ve ever been in, but one hundred percent worth it. Here is the video of me making the jump!

Magdalenefjorden

Day 8

Our second to last day on the ship was Jacob’s birthday. We made our way to Kongsfjorden this morning, landing for a short hike with a view over the northeast part of Svalbard. It was a beautiful day and our last full one before returning to our initial departure location.

In the afternoon we landed at Ny Alesund, the current location of international research stations. It’s a charming little town with colored houses – the first time we’d seen other people in days! While here, we got a passport stamp from the northernmost post office in the world.

That evening the crew hosted a BBQ party on the top deck of the ship. We all filled our plates and sat around the edge overlooking an incredible series of glaciers while snow was falling. It was one of the most magical evenings. It wasn’t long before music was playing and everyone was dancing. Right before retiring to bed, the team surprised Jacob with a birthday cake.

Kongsfjorden

Day 9

This was our final day exploring a new part of Svalbard before returning to the capital of Longyearbyen. We were so lucky with animal sightings on this trip – at this point we’d seen numerous polar bears, arctic foxes, puffins, walruses, birds, even rare blue whales.

Of course, Svalbard surprised us once more. As we were heading to shore on our zodiac for our morning landing in Trygghmana, we spotted a white animal in the water: a beluga whale! Moments later more beluga whales surfaced, and we were surrounded by dozens making their way to the nearby bay. Our guide cut the engine and we sat mesmerized for the next hour, watching the migration and taking photos.

Our final landing took us to some incredible rock formations jutting out over the water. We explored old huts and took the zodiac boat out to see puffins. We couldn’t believe the trip was coming to a close, it felt like we had seen so much and yet it went by quicker than we ever could’ve imagined.

Beluga Whales in Trygghamna

Skansbukta 

This trip has definitely made me eager to see more arctic locations, especially Greenland and Antarctica. I loved hearing from the guides about each one. Everyone had a soft spot for Svalbard, and I can see why: it’s the only destination where you can truly see something different every single day, since you’re circumnavigating a series of islands that is completely removed from everything else. It’s an insane destination and still completely undiscovered.

Polarquest Website  |  Link to Book

Mention ‘Find Us Lost’ when booking for $300 off any Polarquest Svalbard Expedition in 2020 and 2021. 

Note this offer cannot be combined with any other Polarquest offer and is exclusive to our readers.

Read post: Arctic Summer in Svalbard, part 1