Arctic Adventure Final Days – the long and winding road (home)!

Date: 10th – 15th July

So we received some interesting news on the 10th of July, just as we were to start the journey home. Unfortunately, the SAS airline strike was ongoing and our flight from Longyearbyen to Oslo at 2.30pm had been cancelled! We disembarked early at 9am and made our way to a nearby hotel to either figure out some other way home or wait out the strike.

We decided to write this last blog to combine the next few days of our journey, because it ended up taking us so long to get home that we are now trying to repress the memory!

It took hours of refreshing the page, but eventually Gavin managed to find us four seats on an SAS flight out of Longyearbyen that would definitely (hopefully!) be leaving on the 11th. We quickly snapped those up but then it was on to the more daunting task of how to get home from Oslo – by the time we arrived, we would have missed our previous connecting flight.

On the 12th morning after a delicious buffet breakfast, we met up in the hotel lounge area and basically spent the next ten hours trying to work out the best and most economical way of flying home to Sydney without breaking the bank and/or our will to live. Eventually we settled on what was to be a 50-hour journey. We had one more night in Oslo and then the journey would begin with our first flight at 9.30am on the 13th. Oslo to Bucharest. Bucharest to Doha. Doha to Maldives. Maldives to Singapore. Singapore to Sydney. Touchdown at 11am on the 15th.

Somehow we made it back with hardly any complaints – we even got to make a quick run to our favourite curry house in Singapore, ‘Banana Leaf’, because that stopover was for about 6 hours!

With the journey (finally) at an end, we can safely say that we have achieved our mission to bring the Arctic’s most important issues to the fingertips of those who may not ever have the chance to experience it. Hopefully one day soon, we will be able to create a new educational program for Upschool.co from the next exciting location – the Antarctic!

See you again soon and thanks for reading!

Love from the A Team

Tanya, Gavin, Richard & Graeme

For lots more pictures from the Arctic, taken by our photographer Graeme Myburgh, head to https://upschool.co/blog/ 

Arctic Adventure day sixteen!

Date: 9th July
Latitude & longitude: 78.15°N, 12.55°E
Wind speed: 14 knots
Wind direction: W
Barometer: 1010 hPa
Air temperature: 5°C
Sea temperature: 4°C
Total polar bear count: 9! 

We woke early today, feeling a bit sad because it was to be our last day on board the Greg Mortimer! Breakfast was a quiet affair but we all perked up when the first Zodiac cruise for the day was announced. No matter how often we cruised around in those Zodiacs, it was impossible to get bored – the Arctic sights always offered something new to amaze and delight us.

Today, we cruised to a large glacier in an area called St Jonsfjord. Once again, we were in awe of the massive scale of the glacier before us. As we drifted through the growlers and bergy bits, we were lucky enough to spot a seal playing in the waters! Icebergs break off from the glacier in an event known as ‘calving’ and they vary in shape and size. If they are less than 1 metre high and 5 metres long, they are called growlers, and if they are 1 – 5 metres high and 5 – 15 metres long they are called bergy bits.

In the afternoon we were able to go for a final hike on Steinpynten – there were no bears in sight! Steinpynten is a spot near the entrance to Forlandet National Park, which is known for the world’s most northerly population of stone seals and guillemots. The terrain on Steinpynten is a barren tundra of mostly rocks and some sparse grass and flowers.

Back on the ship, we met up in the lecture room for final drinks and a farewell from the Captain, and Aurora Expeditions showed us all the amazing photos we had all taken, compiled in a beautiful slideshow they had created for us. They handed out some fun certificates – one for ‘SOAR’ – the Society of Arctic Rowers, and one for ‘SOAP’ – the Society of Arctic Plungers! The plungers also got a free t-shirt – ‘I survived the polar plunge!’

Dinner tonight was a sombre event as we all came to terms with the adventure coming to an end. Tomorrow we would be disembarking early and flying back to Oslo for one more night before heading home to Sydney.

See you tomorrow and thanks for reading!

Love from the A Team
Tanya, Gavin, Richard & Graeme

Arctic Adventure day fifteen!

Date: 8th July
Latitude & longitude: 76.58°N, 15.45°E
Wind speed: 2.4 knots
Wind direction: N
Barometer: 1024 hPa
Air temperature: 0°C
Sea temperature: 0.3°C
Total polar bear count: 9! 

Another glorious day greeted us early in the morning – bright blue skies, the sun shining down on us, and calm waters — perfect for a Zodiac cruise!

No matter which way we turned, there was a spectacular sight to behold. In front of the ship was the giant-sized Samarinbreen Glacier, with a length of 23 kilometres, in the Hornsund fjord. Near the shore, we spotted a ringed seal in the water, and there were also some tracks through the snow along the snow bank. As the ice crashed down from the glacier into the sea, we saw kittiwakes diving and feeding on the nutrients churned up from deep below. Above us, soaring high into the sky, was the tallest peak on Spitzbergen — the Hornsuntind, standing at 1480 metres.

We were fortunate to experience another landing in the afternoon — there were no polar bears in sight so we made the most of it! Howard took us to a place called Gnålodden, with a rocky shoreline leading towards a beautifully green and mossy tundra.

Beneath the steep cliffs of the Gnålberget mountain were hundreds of guillemots and kittywakes. Guillemots are interesting in that they don’t have nests – instead they lay a single egg in a pyriform shape (pear-shaped) on the edges of the cliff (likely so that if it rolls, it rolls in a tight circle instead of off the cliff!) in dense breeding colonies. Kittiwakes are in the gull family ‘Laridae’ and make their nests on the cliffs. Chicks instinctively know to sit still to avoid falling off!

All along the slopes of Gnålberget were tiny and cute wildflowers. By the shore, Ben allowed us to explore the historic hut where Wanny Wolstad, the first female trapper in Svalbard, spent several winters of the 1930s, occasionally joined by her husband and sons!

Every night we end our adventures with cocktail hour at the Elephant Island Bar on the ship. Late into the night, we drink and chat, often forgetting that it’s getting late, because of course the sun is still up!

See you tomorrow and thanks for reading!

Love from the A Team
Tanya, Gavin, Richard & Graeme

Arctic Adventure day fourteen!

Date: 7th July
Latitude & longitude: 78.12°N, 21.07°E
Wind speed: 16.4 knots
Wind direction: NE
Barometer: 1024 hPa
Air temperature: 0°C
Sea temperature: 0.3°C
Total polar bear count: 9! 

It was a beautiful day for a walk on land … and the polar bears agreed! Two more were spotted at Sundneset on Barentz Island so unfortunately we had no choice but to skip the morning hike.

Instead, we cruised ahead to the next planned landing at Dolerittneset. Here, we saw hundreds of walrus in the water and hauled out on the sandy beach.

On shore, Ben regaled us with tales of the Pomor people who had previously occupied the area, as we could see from the huts along the beach. The Pomor people are descended from Russian settlers and the name means ‘a person who lives near the sea’. Their traditional livelihood depended on animal hunting, whaling and fishing, and they also practised reindeer herding.

Speaking of reindeer, as we headed on a long hike up a huge, steep hill, we spotted some Svalbard reindeer grazing on the tundra. We made our way to the top of the hill, 720 metres, and paused to take in the sights.

On our way back down, I managed to step knee-deep into a mud-filled sinkhole and get completely stuck! As five people tried to pull me out, they each got stuck in turn! Eventually we made it back to the ship to find out that another group had been stuck in the mud as well, and though they made it back in one piece, one of their boots didn’t!

In the afternoon we found an amazing landing spot – Howard, our expedition leader on Greg Mortimer, managed to find a small bay at the edge of a glacier and we were able to walk on the glacier itself! We were in a spectacular area where three different types of glacier intersected; a debris-covered glacier, which is what we were walking on, a surging glacier and an active-front glacier.

After a long day of hiking and walking, we gathered together at Elephant Island Bar on the ship to share stories and pictures from the day.

See you tomorrow and thanks for reading!

Love from the A Team
Tanya, Gavin, Richard & Graeme

Arctic Adventure day thirteen!

Date: 6th July
Latitude & longitude: 79°16°N, 35.40°E
Wind speed: 3 knots
Wind direction: N
Barometer: 1025 hPa
Air temperature: 2°C
Sea temperature: 0.3°C
Total polar bear count: 7! 

What a day we had today! We have been so fortunate to be waking up to beautiful sunny days in the Arctic, perfect for exploring outside! Each day we’ve had calm seas and clear skies, perfect conditions to brave the wild Arctic outdoors.

Our morning Zodiac cruise took us to Brasvellbreen and some absolutely amazing sights. Before us was the third largest ice cap in Europe, named Austfonna. We slowly cruised along, marvelling at its beauty. Turning a corner, we spotted some spectacular waterfalls cascading off the top of the ice cap, pouring thousands of litres of water into the sea below. We even saw a waterfall coming out of the middle of a glacier, something known as an internal glacial waterfall.

In the afternoon, we were planning on landing at Torellneset but once again we spotted a bear! We cruised along in our Zodiac, watching him from a safe distance, and soon he had lumbered off into the distance.

Closer to us, we saw many walrus hauled out on the shore and many more were in the water bobbing around and watching us with curiosity. The walrus are amazing creatures, surviving in temperatures up to -40°C with their bodies covered in blubber and their tusks that keep growing forever. These social animals are a sight to behold, but beware, the smell of their belches after eating too many clams can really pack a punch.

At night, it was a special celebration on board the Greg Mortimer. Perfect weather conditions for being outside meant that we were having a bbq for dinner out on the top deck! We were greeted with a traditional Norwegian sweet, warm, mulled drink called ‘Glogg’ and then spent the rest of the night enjoying a wonderful buffet bbq.

See you tomorrow and thanks for reading!

Love from the A Team
Tanya, Gavin, Richard & Graeme

Arctic Adventure day twelve!

Date: 5th July
Latitude & longitude: 80.08°N, 33.34°E
Wind speed: 6.6 knots
Wind direction: W
Barometer: 1023 hPa
Air temperature: 1°C
Sea temperature: 0.3°C
Total polar bear count: 6! 

Today we saw five more polar bears!! I’ve decided we need to do an official total polar bear count for this trip, because we seem to just keep on running into them!

In the morning, the ship anchored at a spot near the island Kvitoya, also known as ‘White Island’. We were planning on landing and hiking at Andreeneset, which is where Andrée, Strindberg and Fraenkel spent their final few days.

However, once more we were thwarted by bears! We spotted one sleeping on a massive ice cap, occasionally rolling around playfully, and another one lumbering along the shore, heading straight for the monument commemorating the ill-fated Andrée expedition that we had planned to visit!

As the bear sauntered past, we couldn’t miss the opportunity to record a lesson in front of him. When we first envisaged the Arctic lessons we’d be creating for Upschool.co, the dream was to capture them with a bear in the background, and there we were, prime position to bring the dream to reality!

Later on, the ship repositioned to the most Eastern point of Svalbard — Kraemerpynten. Once again, our plans to hike on the land were thwarted by bears! This time, there were three! We saw one adult bear walking towards the beach, and a mother with her cub snuggled together nearby!

They don’t call it White Island for nothing!

See you tomorrow and thanks for reading!

Love from the A Team
Tanya, Gavin, Richard & Graeme

Arctic Adventure day eleven!

Date: 4th July
Latitude & longitude: 80.39°N, 24.59°°E
Wind speed: 7.4 knots
Wind direction: NW
Barometer: 1024 hPa
Air temperature: -3°C
Sea temperature: 0.3°C 

We spent almost a full day of exploring today. Overnight, we headed out towards what’s known as the ‘polar desert’ — the barren northeast part of Svalbard.

Our first outing in the morning was to the archipelago’s northernmost island — Karl XII Oya. We cruised around in a Zodiac, on the lookout for bears, but instead we spotted some cute common eider ducks and puffins.

At lunch we were interrupted by an excited voice over the tannoy! A blue whale, port side! The blue whale can grow up to 28 metres long and weigh up to 90 tonnes, and their blow can be up to 12 metres high! With only about 3–12,000 of them left on Earth, it was a sight to behold.

In the afternoon we went out for a second Zodiac cruise to the island of Foynoya. We didn’t see any bears, but we did spot some walrus who popped up to watch us cruise by, curious about the drifting humans in their territory!

Later in the afternoon, back on board the Greg Mortimer, Ben entertained us all with the interesting tale of Andrée, Strindberg and Fraenkel’s attempt to cross the North Pole in a hot air balloon. Spoiler alert, they all perished! And were most likely mauled by polar bears!

See you tomorrow and thanks for reading!

Love from the A Team
Tanya, Gavin, Richard & Graeme

Arctic Adventure day ten!

Date: 3rd July
Latitude & longitude: 81°N, 25°E
Wind speed: 9 knots
Wind direction: NW
Barometer: 1022 hPa
Air temperature: -3°C
Sea temperature: 0.3°C 

Today we did the unthinkable.
The ship anchored at 81°N, 25°E and at 4.15 pm a call came over the tannoy — come down to the mud room to do a ‘polar plunge’!!

We looked outside and saw large chunks of ice floating by and our immediate thought was ‘oh no!’

In a way it was good that we weren’t given any significant warning because we didn’t have time to talk ourselves out of it! All four of us, the A team, took the plunge together into the 0° waters! Even though you could see the look of regret in our faces, I have to say I’m glad we did it!

Overnight, we had headed north towards the pack ice, which is annual ice that grows every winter up to a meter thick and then melts through the summer.

Earlier in the day we were captivated by Ulyana’s lecture on the wonderful world of ice, where we started to understand the importance that ice plays in balancing the world’s ecosystems. We took her aside and recorded a lesson with her on how we can all play our part in protecting the sea ice situated in the Arctic.

After our polar plunge, we headed straight to the sauna and then the jacuzzi to thaw out a little, and in the afternoon we attended another interesting lecture on whales and the history of Svalbard, led by Ben, where we learned about how whaling was integral to those early communities.

Later on in the evening, to end the day, we met Daniel on the upper deck to record a lesson on climate and weather processes.

See you tomorrow and thanks for reading!

Love from the A Team
Tanya, Gavin, Richard & Graeme

Arctic Adventure day nine!

Date: 2nd July
Latitude & longitude: 79.52°N, 11.33°E
Wind speed: 23.8 knots
Wind direction: SW
Barometer: 1028 hPa
Air temperature: 5°C
Sea temperature: 0.3°C

It’s so early into our Arctic Adventure and we’ve already seen our first polar bear!!!

In the morning, our original plans were to head out on the Zodiac to an area called Ytre Norskoya and do some hikes there on the land, however at the last moment those plans had to be cancelled as there had been a polar bear sighting!

If ever there is a sighting of a polar bear, it is too dangerous to do a landing because these bears can travel exceptionally fast — up to 60km/hr on land and 15km/hr in the water.

So the new plan was to cruise around in the Zodiac and watch the bear from afar.

After lunch, we were back on the Zodiac, cruising through to view some palatial glaciers where we learned about calving — the birth of an iceberg. We recorded some Upschool.co educational lessons for the children in front of the ice, and then again in front of the mountains filled with bright orange lychen, which is created through the symbiosis of algae and fungi.

Here, we also managed to spot a couple of Arctic foxes and some Arctic terns defending their nests.

Each night after dinner, we venture to the top deck for a well-deserved dip in the jacuzzi. The contrast between the icy cold air and the steaming hot water, along with the palatial glacial scenery, is just to die for!

We feel privileged to be here and hope to do justice to the educational program we’re bringing back home with us for Upschool.co.

See you tomorrow and thanks for reading!

Love from the A Team
Tanya, Gavin, Richard & Graeme

Arctic Adventure day eight!

Date: 1st July
Latitude & longitude: 79.16°N, 15.30°E
Wind speed: 20km/hr
Wind direction: SE
Barometer: 1020 hPa
Air temperature: 5°C
Sea temperature: 5.8°C

Each morning on the ship, we are to be woken up early for breakfast. Across the tannoy at 7am comes a call — half an hour till breakfast is ready! That message serves as our wake up call and we quickly get ready to feast — a delicious buffet awaits us.

We were still anchored in Longyearbyen Harbour and spent the morning doing some mandatory activities — a Zodiac briefing, an AECO (Association of Arctic Expedition Cruise Operators) informational slide show and a biosecurity check.

In the afternoon we took our first trip out on the Zodiac into a Grand Canyon to make our first landing at Skansbukta. Here, we learned about the gypsum mine that operated from 1918 until the 1930s, marvelling at the remains, which included a twisting railway that led from the mine out towards the loading platform on the shore.

We watched as two lazy reindeer grazed on the grass nearby and we carefully tread around the skeletal remains of another reindeer that had met a grisly end in the jaws of a polar bear — somewhat recently, it seemed!

Later, on our way back to the ship, we cruised past the puffin cliffs to get a glimpse of the puffins swarming and nesting, and then headed back to the ship where Captain Oleg Klaptenko introduced himself and his officers, and officially welcomed us all aboard.

See you tomorrow and thanks for reading!

Love from the A Team
Tanya, Gavin, Richard & Graeme