Liefdefiorden & Moffen Island
The National Geographic Endeavour sailed south from the pack ice toward the island of Spitsbergen under a brilliant midnight sun. We awoke outside the entrance to Woodfjorden with high cloud cover and calm winds. We entered Liefdefiorden and then, during breakfast, spotted a partially eaten seal on a small piece of ice in the fjord. The seal must have been killed recently by a polar bear and two possible culprits were soon identified on the shore nearby. Glaucous gulls fed on the remains as we passed the ice on our way toward the spectacular ice front of Monaco glacier.
The sharply pointed mountains of west Spitsbergen rise high above the ice providing ‘textbook’ examples of glacially carved ridges (arêtes), high u-shaped valleys carved by tributary glaciers (hanging valleys), and various shapes of glacial sediment (moraines). The calm waters of the fjord provided an excellent opportunity for Zodiac explorations along the ice front and kayaking along the west side of the fjord. Monaco Glacier displayed spectacular evidence of its movement when large pieces of ice broke or “calved” from the circa 120 foot high ice cliff and crashed into the sea. The falling ice excited the numerous kittiwakes feeding on fish brought near the surface by turbulence and the mixing of salt and fresh water from subglacial rivers.
At 11:30 a small, but brave group jumped into the near-freezing water for a brief polar plunge from the beach. Lunch was served at noon as the National Geographic Endeavour departed Liefdefiorden and headed toward Moffen Island. We reached Moffen early in the afternoon and spent nearly an hour enjoying the large group of walrus hauled out on the beach. These huge animals displayed their blood-enriched bodies in order to cool themselves in the Arctic heat! The National Geographic Endeavour then turned west and south toward Longyearbyen. Many of us spent the afternoon participating in a thoughtful LEX Forum on global climate change and its potential to alter Svalbard. Captain’s Fairwell cocktail hour found us heading south along the west coast of Spitsbergen thinking about the end of a wonderful voyage.
But, it was not over. As the National Geographic Endeavour continued south along the deep waters adjacent to the continental slope, we spotted a large pod of killer whales. These whales were clearly hunting a minke whale. We were enthralled to see the slow process of the killer whales tiring their prey and finally the kill.
The National Geographic Endeavour sailed south from the pack ice toward the island of Spitsbergen under a brilliant midnight sun. We awoke outside the entrance to Woodfjorden with high cloud cover and calm winds. We entered Liefdefiorden and then, during breakfast, spotted a partially eaten seal on a small piece of ice in the fjord. The seal must have been killed recently by a polar bear and two possible culprits were soon identified on the shore nearby. Glaucous gulls fed on the remains as we passed the ice on our way toward the spectacular ice front of Monaco glacier.
The sharply pointed mountains of west Spitsbergen rise high above the ice providing ‘textbook’ examples of glacially carved ridges (arêtes), high u-shaped valleys carved by tributary glaciers (hanging valleys), and various shapes of glacial sediment (moraines). The calm waters of the fjord provided an excellent opportunity for Zodiac explorations along the ice front and kayaking along the west side of the fjord. Monaco Glacier displayed spectacular evidence of its movement when large pieces of ice broke or “calved” from the circa 120 foot high ice cliff and crashed into the sea. The falling ice excited the numerous kittiwakes feeding on fish brought near the surface by turbulence and the mixing of salt and fresh water from subglacial rivers.
At 11:30 a small, but brave group jumped into the near-freezing water for a brief polar plunge from the beach. Lunch was served at noon as the National Geographic Endeavour departed Liefdefiorden and headed toward Moffen Island. We reached Moffen early in the afternoon and spent nearly an hour enjoying the large group of walrus hauled out on the beach. These huge animals displayed their blood-enriched bodies in order to cool themselves in the Arctic heat! The National Geographic Endeavour then turned west and south toward Longyearbyen. Many of us spent the afternoon participating in a thoughtful LEX Forum on global climate change and its potential to alter Svalbard. Captain’s Fairwell cocktail hour found us heading south along the west coast of Spitsbergen thinking about the end of a wonderful voyage.
But, it was not over. As the National Geographic Endeavour continued south along the deep waters adjacent to the continental slope, we spotted a large pod of killer whales. These whales were clearly hunting a minke whale. We were enthralled to see the slow process of the killer whales tiring their prey and finally the kill.
