Svalbard Expedition 2018 - Sailing back to the North.
Leg: 18.6
Cruise rout: Longyearbyen -Longyearbyen
Svalbard archipelago Cruise plan. West Svalbard, but the range of navigation to the north and south and the detailed plan of the cruise will depend on the current weather conditions and formal requirements. The initial plan is the largest clusters of permanent residents in the Isfjorden region: Barentsburg and Longyearbyen. Then further north, Kongsfjorden and the surrounding area are known as one of the most beautiful areas of the fjords. In this area, we find the former mining settlement of Ny-Ålesund, today an international research center, with a picturesque combination of old and new buildings. Even further to the north-west is Krossfjorden, with cultural remains from the period of whaling, Russian and Norwegian wintering and World War II. Nordvesthjørnet and Raudfjorden. It was this area of the island that Willem Barentsz and his crew discovered on June 17, 1596, that it was "rough", giving the name Spitsbergen. In the following centuries, a large number of Greenlandic whales attracted whalers from the Netherlands and other countries, and the area became That's why in Nordvesthjørnet we will meet the largest concentration of graves, kitchen stoves and other cultural treasures on the island of Spitsbergen, from the first era of exploitation of natural resources in Svalbard, Woodfjorden, Liefdefjorden and Bockfjorden. a great fjord system that stretches towards several mountain ridges with very different shapes, including the alpine peaks of very old granites, the majestic red mountains of Devonian sandstone, the conical remains of three volcanoes, and even hot springs.
Then we will visit Bellsund, which crosses Spitsbergen south of Isfjorden and divides into two branches: the Van Mijenfjorden and Van Keulenfjorden fjords. The landscape is formed by high mountains, in which various geological structures are visible, including impressive folds. This area has cultural remnants from several periods of Svalbard's history, the most prominent ones being the era of exploration and mining at the beginning of the 20th century. Hornsund. The majestic peaks and dramatic fjords make the visit to Hornsund unique. The highest peaks are often covered with fog, but if you're lucky, you can see Hornsundtind, reaching the level of 1431 m.n.p.m. Hornsund is the southernmost fjord on Svalbard, located in the Sør-Spitsbergen National Park. Traces of human activity lasting 400 years can be found almost anywhere there are possible places of unloading.
Helpful INFO (internet links):
http://www.visitsvalbard.com/en/Frontpage?_ga=2.227468885.954868874.1507378268-1795706462.1507378268
https://www.visitnorway.pl/gdzie-jechac/svalbard/
https://www.sysselmannen.no/en/Back to expedition