‘Expedition’ to the Polar Ice Cap - 6 and 7 Aug 2015
Night has not fallen since a few days, however, the sun
remains elusive and we travel through hours of fog, interspersed with rain, changing
visibility and the odd clear moment of a ray of sun creating a momentary rainbow.
The sea is calm, the fjords silent. We glide slowly, almost
silently into the innermost recesses of majestic Magdalen Fjord, until our way
is blocked by a ring of massive glaciers. One stands in mute admiration of the
raw beauty of the land and seascape – bare of trees or bushes. A few slopes
below the nesting areas of sea birds are fertilized enough to allow a thin
carpet of mosses and lichens to eek a living out of the bare rock, which adds faint
colouration to the barren landscape.
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| 'Arctic Garden' |
All else appears, black, white and shades
of grey. Some translucent ice floes shine with crystalline blues and brilliant greens.
A lone hut on a rocky outcrop – the only sign of human presence, and indeed one
man dwarfed by his surroundings stood outside this hut – photographing us while
we photographed him.
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| A lone human in a loneliness of ice and rock |
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| The hut is dwarfed by towering mountains |
A lone two-masted schooner is anchored in an expansive bay
at the foot of a glacier that disappears in sinuous curves into the mist of the
higher mountain ranges. It seems a
little toy against the backdrop of towering ice cliffs, and a sea of crevasses,
and sheer drops from mountain peaks that disappear upward into layers of clouds
and mist.
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| Still a long way off the ice face - close enough to hear and see calving of the glacier |
We head back into the open Greenland Sea steaming further
north (ice pilot aboard) until we encounter loose pack ice, dense fog and chill
drizzle. Visibility being thus reduced, we do not dare to progress further into
the sea of growlers and bits of sea ice, which – if wind and currents mass it
together – may entrap our ship.
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| Watching sea, ice and fog from the bow of Prinsendam |
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| You are here.... |
At 80 degrees north, the ship stops and maintains position.
A tender is lowered to the calm sea to take photos of the ship surrounded by
bits of ice and shrouded in fog. Armed with a large net, the tender crew
secures a good chunk of sea ice to take aboard.
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| Capturing a Chunk of Sea Ice |
Many passenger (including yours
truly) climb the pulpit of Prinsendam (only allowed on special occasions and
under strict supervision) to capture the ‘furthest north ever’ moment. We won’t
be able to catch a glimpse of the ‘ice-cap’ itself, it is just too risky to
proceed.
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| Man and Nemo at 80 degrees north |
Chilled to the bone, a swim in the open air back deck pool
seemed to be the least thing to do to celebrate. It sounds positively
ridiculous, but – for the day, the pool was filled with sea water heated to at
least 100 degrees Fahrenheit. Once submerged, one did not feel like coming out
again – warmer in the water than in the air. I climbed in after the ‘Polar
Swim’ enthusiasts had taken their dip, and luxuriated with Fulmars flying around
the ship, polar drizzle cooling my head, and hot Gluehwein awaiting as an
‘after swim’ treat. The crew prepared an arctic salmon bake on the outside
deck, and a festive mood prevailed throughout the day.
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| Salmon Bake |
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| and Gluehwein |
This is about as far north, and as close to any pole I will
ever get (visits to the Antarctic Peninsular do not even come close to the
Antarctic Circle, never mind the South Pole). My imagination runs riot, thinking
how close we are to Ellesmere Island on the top of Canada, the upper part of
Greenland and the most northerly reaches of Siberia – and in the middle: the
North Pole, almost in the centre of a large sea, and surrounded by ice. And
here we are, a miniscule little ship, nosing in…
Modern technology is left behind – we have no Internet
connection since a week. That means no news, no newspapers, no emails from
home, no blogging, no Skype, no CNN or FOX on the screens….we all survive quite
nicely even without a daily digital diet. May be Iceland will allow us
to‘re-connect’.
Prinsendam, did not carry any heavy diesel at least since
leaving Alesund, which allowed her to enter (among all the other northern
waters) a spectacular fjord called Krossfjorden and its upper branch
Liilienhoekfjorden near Ny-Alesund (our
next port).
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| The long dawn at the west coast of Spitsbergen |
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| And now we are here... |
Both the Antarctic and the Arctic prohibits the presence of
heavy diesel on ships, thus, many cruise lines are disallowed from entering the
pristine waters unless all their fuel tanks are empty of heavy diesel, and only
light fuel is carried. An expensive affair, and probably not economically
feasible for large ships – larger than Prinsendam anyway.
To view the scenery of Lillienhoek involved getting out of
bed at around 04:00 a.m. – not a tough thing to do, as plain daylight prevails
24 hours a day. A maiden voyage for Holland America Line; ‘little’ Prinsendam
is able to snuggle into these remote tight places.
A little hot chocolate served on the outer decks kept the
chill under control. We entered deep into the fjord, which was ringed by one
glacier after another – imposing, beautiful, majestic, awe inspiring.
We turned to head to Ny-Alesund to drop anchor around 8:00
a.m. and tender ashore. We were in luck again, Captain Schuchmann advised, that
the short dock was available for us to tie up alongside – no tendering
required!
