Spitsbergen - Arctic Expedition & Polar Bears

Everyone knows Norway. Did you know that Svalbard (Spitsbergen) is also part of it? The 'cool coast,' as Spitsbergen translates, is a group of islands administered by Norway high up in the north in Arctic waters.

When a fellow researcher contacted me to see if I was interested in a small yet fine expedition to the Arctic, I didn't hesitate long. The trip is expensive, but I sold my car, so the money was wisely reinvested.

With the small expedition ship M/S Kinfish, we set out before the 'main season' and the arrival of larger cruise ships at the end of April. We were heading toward the North Pole.

Before departing from the port of Longyearbyen, we had no idea how far north we would journey. How open is the pack ice? Will storms, which often occur at this time of year, disrupt our plans? That's exactly what makes the allure of an expedition. As one of the first ships of the 'season' in 2019, we set sail.

The biggest danger for me was contracting the virus of Arctic fascination. I love ice, polar bears, and have a strong sense of adventure. Read here Chris's account from this year about the trip to the Arctic to Spitsbergen on a new ship.

What can I say? It happened. I want to go back and here I share my story about the Arctic expedition.

Note: Since my expedition was individually planned by a fellow researcher, you cannot currently book this tour as is. However, you can book these small expeditions (and photography trips) at DIAMIR. I highly recommend this provider. Chris was with DIAMIR in the Arctic, read here his report about the Arctic with the expedition ship around Spitsbergen

About 2,700 people and an estimated 3,000 polar bears live in Spitsbergen. It has one of the densest bear populations in the world relative to the number of people.

So, my chances are relatively good to see one of these beautiful creatures again after my trip to Churchill, Manitoba (Canada). The king of the Arctic, as polar bears are also called, feels at home here.

Spitsbergen consists of around 400 islands. I have only been able to admire this magnificent nature made of ice and glaciers through pictures and documentaries. Now I am here in person.

Spitsbergen is not only home to polar bears but also walruses, reindeer, and beluga whales. Unfortunately, it also shows visible signs of climate change.

Our journey begins in the northernmost city in the world: Longyearbyen. Here, no doors are locked. There are only a few restaurants, and accommodations are expensive. Why are more and more people drawn to this remote place in the Arctic Ocean? The answer is simple: They want to see the 'king of the Arctic.' However, the polar bear today is primarily a symbol of climate change.

Enjoy reading!

Travel to Spitsbergen is via Oslo to Longyearbyen, the only city in Svalbard*. The city once relied on coal mining.

When I arrive at Longyearbyen airport at around 1 AM, it is bright as day. The Polar Nights in winter, when the sun does not rise and there is over 24 hours of darkness, are followed by 24-hour days without sunset. It is bright.

We take the airport bus (75 NOK) directly to the hotel. By around 2:34 AM, I am finally in bed.

*A city must have at least 2,000 residents to be classified as a "city." In Svalbard, there is also Ny Alesund with around 30 residents and Barentsburg with approximately 470 residents. Until the early 90s, there was the now-abandoned Russian mining town of Pyramiden.

After a rather short night, I explore Longyearbyen. First, the tourist info, then the main street with outdoor shops and cafés.

Tip: Furen, the northernmost chocolaterie in the world.

Later, I visit the Svalbard Museum and learn more about the history of Svalbard.

Particularly noteworthy are the stuffed animals: polar bear, walrus, seal, and various birds. This way, you can see what the native animals look like. Their size is often impressive. An adult polar bear comes up to my shoulders.

In the late afternoon, we embark on a approximately 4-hour tour with See and Explore. We are on the lookout for the Arctic Fox (Polar Fox). The sense of time completely disappears. The lighting conditions are constant; nothing changes, giving us no reference point. For me, this is a completely new feeling.

It's no wonder that we are only scheduled to have dinner at 9 PM.

First, we find Svalbard Reindeer. The reindeer are white and pass by just a few meters away, completely relaxed.

Then, the snow-white polar foxes reveal themselves.

After leaving the harbor one late afternoon, the sea is still calm. A protective fjord surrounds us. Once completely frozen in winter, this has not been the case in years. To the detriment of the polar bears, who are losing part of their hunting habitat for seals piece by piece.

Barely out of the protective fjord and into open water, a gentle, very pleasant swell begins for me. For most of my 11 travel companions, this is already too much. The dining table empties quickly. The poor souls, I think, as we marvel at a breathtaking landscape on deck. The mountains are snow-covered, and a light snowfall has started.

We grab our cameras and face the icy wind for the first time, which blows high up in the north. The temperatures, just a few degrees below zero, are too warm for this time of year. The snow melt begins early. The ice is literally melting from under the polar bears.

The days in the Arctic are long. One looks in vain for a sunset: 24 hours of daylight. The best light for photography. If no animals are showing, you have this breathtaking landscape in front of you. We are speechless and moved.

Our two expedition leaders, Micha and Beau, take turns on the bridge, scanning the fjords and pack ice for polar bears. We assist and search as well. You sit with the captain, discuss past expeditions, and let him tell you stories.

The experienced Arctic and Antarctic travelers have already seen a lot. Michael is a researcher and once worked at the Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research. He was on board the largest research ship Prospect and is a globally sought-after specialist for polar regions. He's just over 30 years old. Having such a person as a friend is invaluable. I soak up everything he tells us about nature and climate change.

There are days when nothing happens. We encounter storms, and the pack ice breaks. Bad for polar bears who are currently on their way north with their young ones. Therefore, we are here so early. We wanted to see polar bears with cubs. The chances are actually good. Not so with storms.

Our captain Bosse navigates the small expedition boat M/S Kinfish through the large ice blocks like playing Tetris. Thanks to sonar, he can estimate how deep the icebergs go beneath the surface.

We sail into fjords, see glaciers (I love them), and incredibly beautiful mountains.

But there are also these days of pure luck. One of them is right at the start: We board our Zodiacs (we have 2 inflatable boats on board) to observe a polar bear mother and her approximately 1-year-old cub. We must always maintain a safe distance so as not to disturb the animals' behavior in any way.

Sometimes it's around 450 meters, while with stressed animals, it can be over 1 kilometer. Equipped with large telephoto lenses, life jackets, and warm clothing, we are ready.

The bears seem unbothered by us. Their focus is on a seal, which cheekily keeps poking its head out of the water towards the polar bears. Suddenly a leap! Mama bear plunges into the water. A struggle that remains hidden from us. A short time later, the polar bear comes back ashore. The attempt to get food has failed.

The seal swims on further along the shore as if to say, 'Look at me, you can't get me!'

Suddenly, we spot more animals in the water. They come out of nowhere. At first, we see only sprays and a previously unheard sound. Even our experts are speechless: approximately 300 beluga whales suddenly surround us. We stand there, mouths agape. No one can take a photo with their telephoto lens.

But where's the phone?

As soon as you go offline, you banish modern smartphones from your mind. It's nice in a way, but now it's just annoying.

That day, we are upbeat. We hope it continues like this for the next nine days, right?

Of course, we are not at the zoo, and things turn out quite differently. Thus begins eight days of searching for a route through the ice. This includes weighing the danger of getting trapped and the search for polar bears.

We encounter storms and have sleepless nights. The boat is tossed back and forth by the waves. Even I start to feel the strain at some point. Lack of sleep gets mixed with adrenaline. Because one of the over 3,000 polar bears must be found somewhere.

A storm arrives overnight. The waves crash over the deck. The next morning, everything is covered in a layer of ice one centimeter thick.

We spend hours playing board games, sharing knowledge in image editing and photography, and chatting. Most of the time, we sit with the captain. Because the scenery is gorgeous. Whether it's icebergs, glaciers, or pyramid-shaped mountains, Spitsbergen is a paradise.

We ride the inflatable boat along the glaciers, see several walruses, and enjoy this nature.

We cannot approach this walrus. It is unclear if it has a baby with it. Therefore: Keep your distance!

Eight days later, on the second-to-last day aboard. Suddenly, guide Beau and I simultaneously spot a moving yellow dot in the distance. We quickly realize that we are referring to differently moving points.

We are lucky: 2 polar bears. Minutes later the announcement comes: Dress up, get ready, life jackets on. Cameras charged. The Zodiacs are lowered into the water.

We spend two hours at a respectful distance observing the courtship of the two polar bears. A rarity, we know. The bears completely ignore us. They fight, bite each other, and mate. The cameras click away like machine guns. Hours later, the spectacle is over. The polar bears lie exhausted on the ice. We head to dinner. Everyone has a smile on their face.

The next morning comes the news: Polar bears in motion. The same game again, but this time even better: Dress up, cameras ready, and off to the Zodiac (inflatable boat).

We get closer to the polar bears than ever before. They jump into the water, we hear their breathing, and see their blue tongues. Tears spring to our eyes. These polar bears are simply fascinating. It hurts to see how climate change restricts their habitat or how other nations take a lax approach to protecting these animals.

We have seen and learned a lot. We have long put aside our cameras and look at each other in disbelief. This was truly one of the most beautiful moments in our lives while traveling!

Then begins the journey back to Longyearbyen. In the early evening, we are back on land at the port of Longyearbyen. During a farewell dinner with the entire crew, we spend one last evening together.

Together, we end the evening at a bar 'on land' until the early morning. Our mistake? The sun shines - of course - at 4 AM as well. Clearly blinded, we fall into our bunks one last time for a few hours.

Then begins the long journey home via Tromsø, Oslo, and Frankfurt. A few remain longer.

For example, the amount of ice (there was more in 2019 than in 2018) does not indicate the state of climate change. The fact is, with the melting of the ice, the habitat is shrinking year by year.

The fjords freeze later and thaw faster. When we returned to Longyearbyen, almost all the snow had melted in the city. 'Only' -2 degrees in early May is way too warm for this place. Normally, spring starts at the end of May - June.

2019 is already in late April. Our brains are racing. What can we do to protect polar bears? Climate change is here, and it's coming rapidly.

Are you wondering why I travel to this fragile nature at all? Pictures and reports from these regions do them good. Only in this way can I create awareness for their protection. We have a large readership on this blog, and we reach over 230,000 people a month with our articles. The trend is rising.

I want to write about it, which is why I get on a small expedition ship with researchers on board. I would never step on a cruise ship again in my life. They do not make a sustainable contribution to tourism and, unfortunately, pollute the environment. I can't deny having tested this type of travel many years ago. Now, I despise mass tourism from major shipping companies like AIDA, TUI Mein Schiff, and those American giant ships.

Tourism in Spitsbergen is strictly limited. A comprehensive set of rules for landings and wildlife observation has been established. Violations are immediately punished. They are not picky when it comes to revoking licenses.

The more I travel, the more I think. One avoids flying as much as possible. Long-haul flights are extended into very long journeys. Plastic is avoided, one changes habits. Soap instead of shower gel, trains instead of planes or cars. Everyone can take a small step for the environment. You just have to start.

Note: Since my expedition was individually planned by a fellow researcher, you cannot currently book this tour as is. However, you can book these small expeditions (and photography trips) at DIAMIR. I highly recommend this provider. Chris was with DIAMIR in the Arctic, read here his report about the Arctic with the expedition ship around Spitsbergen

Since we undertook a true Arctic expedition, the route was only roughly planned in advance. Daily, new weather and pack ice maps were downloaded via satellite. Conditions and ice conditions were discussed. We aimed to avoid storms as much as possible. We did not know what to expect.

Click here to view our route directly on Google Earth. Thank you to Micha, who saved and recorded all the locations.

Note: Since my expedition was individually planned by a fellow researcher, you cannot currently book this tour as is. However, you can book these small expeditions (and photography trips) at DIAMIR. I highly recommend this provider. Chris was with DIAMIR in the Arctic, read here his report about the Arctic with the expedition ship around Spitsbergen

For the Arctic, it depends on what you want.

The main travel season or the optimal time recommended by travel operators for a trip to the Arctic is June, July, and August. This is when it is warmest, and large cruise companies offer tours around Svalbard. With a ship, you can go far north since no pack ice makes the fjords inaccessible.

The winters are long, very cold, and dark. This phenomenon is called the Polar Night. Following this are the summers (April to August), during which it is 24 hours bright (midnight sun). The angle of incidence of the sun is very shallow towards the North Pole. This results in only the ground surface thawing (in an ideal scenario).

We were in Svalbard from the end of April to the beginning of May. Just before the 'main season,' we were one of the first ships to sail out of the harbor after the long winter. The weather in these months is unpredictable. Storms with significant seas often dominate the days and thus the route.

We encountered just such storms. The pack ice broke up, and further travel was not recommended. The danger of being trapped by refreezing ice was too high.

Nevertheless, these are the months to encounter polar bear mothers with their young heading north. They have just left their dens to go to the eternal ice and spend the winter there.

From mid-November to the end of January, complete darkness dominates life in Spitsbergen. Even though Spitsbergen is almost too far north for the Northern Lights, you have the best chances during this time.

This journey was one of the most special and to one of the most fragile places for me. A good crew and great 'travel companions' are vital when the weather is not on your side. Traveling with passionate photographers is fun, as you spend quite a bit of time on the icy and frozen deck when for others there is 'nothing' to see.

The landscape and the masses of ice are the highlight, with polar bears, beluga whales, and walruses being a bonus.

Note: Since my expedition was individually planned by a fellow researcher, you cannot currently book this tour as is. However, you can book these small expeditions (and photography trips) at DIAMIR. I highly recommend this provider.

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