Isfjord Radio

A couple of weeks ago we went on a trip to the west coast with our friend Henning. It was a last minute kind of decision, but we wanted to do something on the little Easter holiday that we had. The reason we had decided to go there was because we called late the night before to see if they were able to make a vegan meal, when they said we made a reservation for three! So we went on a snowmobile trip to Isfjord radio. It took us just under three hours to drive the nearly 200km there, with some nice stops along the way. It was beautiful weather; with the sun shining and blue skies, it felt like a proper Easter!

We arrived earlier than expected out at Isfjord radio, so we had some coffee and took a tour of the place then sat down and enjoyed a rest in their sunny windows. It is such a beautiful place, not just the views and the smell of the ocean, but the guest rooms and the lounging area as well. It was quite a surprise for me. Lunch was delicious, and by far the best vegan meal I've had in a restaurant on Svalbard! I nearly cried I was so happy. So we've decided that for a good meal out we just have to drive nearly 3hrs by snow scooter, ha!

On the drive back we took another route for part of the trip and made a few stops just to have some fun. We stopped to look out at Barentsburg. I have yet to go there but the view from across the fjord was very nice. Then we stopped by the Grønfjord glacier and found this great melt channel. Every couple meters we walked forward we were surprised by how huge the melt channel was and how awesome the formations were. It was a really cool find!

It was a very exciting trip and I was happy to see the west coast and more of Svalbard.

 This is on the way to the west coast, with a few of Barentsburg and the dark cloud forming above it.

Me in the sunny window on the lounging room!

 Oskar pretending to surf on his shovel.

This is a link to one of the tourism companies websites up here that runs Isfjord Radio, I just wanted to add this so that you could see some photos of the inside. Very pretty.

http://www.basecampspitsbergen.com/Our-hotels/Basecamp-Isfjord-Radio

Mohnbukta - The East coast

200 Kilometers

3 days

4 people in a cabin that fits 2 people.

Our ultimate test to see if we have what it takes to live next door to the North Pole.

The light in the evening was just magical.

On our way there. We took turns driving. This is while going through a moraine to get on to the "Rabbot Glacier".

Finally up on to the glacier, we had a wonderful 360' view.

The cabin and our trusty polar bear guard; Geisha.

Jessica enjoying some morning tea in the cabin.

This picture was taken from Fredheim on our way back. In the distance the Von Post glacier can be seen. Usually there is sea ice to drive on all the way to the glacier. But not this year.

Espen comparing the size of he's hand the a polar bears track.

Glacier front, 30 meters tall.

A male polarbear we ran into on our way back to the cabin one afternoon.

Jessica's first time seeing a polarbear. A mother and her 2 cubs.

Cubs.

It might seem weird, when you live far enough away already, that you would want to pack up the snowmobile, a sled and head even further into the wilderness. But boy did it pay off !

We had perfect conditions, a few minus degrees, bluebird skies, 20 centimetres of fresh powder and no wind.

Loaded with rifles, red wine, a glow in the dark bottle filled with Jagermeister and loads of good food we set off with our friends Espen and Julie, and their dog Geisha. We headed out saturday morning, not really knowing if we were sure what we were about to experience.

Our destination was Mohnbukta, well known for it's many polar bears this time of the year. The excitement and the expectations were big, but already the first day, after hours on the snowmobile did Jessica get to see her first polar bear. Not just a bear, but a mother with two cubs, beautifully relaxing in front of a glacier out on the sea ice. On our way back to the cabin we came across another one (that was actually headed in the direction of our cabin), this time a huge male. We spent some time just admiring this fantastic animal before we went back to our cozy, hobbit - like shelter. The cabin was small enough that I (Oskar) could reach with my hands across the cabin from wall to wall and touch both the ceiling and the floor at the same time.

Tiny!

We had great food, good drinks and a nice sleep. Jessica was sleeping in the top bunk, sweating in 25 degrees, while I was freezing, sleeping on the floor in minus degrees.

We took another way home monday morning, and got to see even more of this beautiful land up here. Glaciers and huge valleys. Nature so beautiful you don't even bother to try and take a picture of it.

So, as always, some drama was bound to happen too...

Safely back in Longyearbyen, just about to eat dinner after being home for a couple of hours, a friend of ours called from he's satellite phone. He was sick and needed to be picked up and brought back to town. No problem i thought, and set off just before eleven. trouble with the route, lack of sea ice to drive on and not eager to go up a hill that can only be described as a frozen Niagara Falls with 2 centimetres of snow on it, and with a sick buddy on the back we had to take a 100+ kilometre detour over glaciers none of us had ever been on before.

Around five in the morning, I was happy to come home and go to sleep next to a snoring canadian dreaming about her next adventures, totally unaware i had been gone 5 hours longer than expected in the middle of the night...

Until next adventure!

Jessica and Oskar

Thank you Espen for letting us use some of your pictures...