Land of the midnight sun

Trip Start Jun 29, 2008
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Trip End Nov 27, 2008

Flag of Norway  , Svalbard and Jan Mayen,
Friday, August 22, 2008

The starting point for my Arctic Expedition around Svalbard, an island archipelago lying North of the Norwegian mainland, was Longyearbyen. Longyearbyen, lying at 78 degrees North, is the main town of Svalbard, with about 1900 inhabitants. Being this far North, it experiences 24hrs sunlight for a few months at this time of year (which means good curtains are required if you don't wish to upset your sleep-wake cycle). I can understand the attraction of constant daylight, but find it amazing that they happily live here during winter, when there is 24hr darkness for many months. It is said there are as many snow mobiles as people in the town, and it definitely seemed an accurate statement.

I was actually lucky to make it to Longyearbyen with only a delay of a few hours. Our flight from Oslo went via Tromso, where we were advised of a delay with an update in an hours time. There were film crews wandering around the airport interviewing staff, and I wondered what all the fuss was about. As it happened, there had not been any flights able to fly in or out of Longyearbyen for the prior 3 days due to fog. I was very glad when our flight was able to proceed. On arrival at Longyearbyen, the usually sleepy little airport was packed solid with people trying to get a flight out that day. You could hardly move!!

Longyearbyen started out as a mining town, and mining is still an important industry here. These days, tourism is also important for the town. The community is well set-up for people of all ages, with a school, community and sporting centres. The layout and appearance of the town of Longyearbyen reminded me of photos I have seen of west Antarctic settlements. It is a harsh but beautiful environment up here. I had come for an Expedition trip of the Arctic with Quark, the same company that I travelled with to the Antarctic. I was ready for a very different but still fantastic experience, and I was hoping very much that I would see at least one polar bear. You'll have to read my next blog to find out if I got my wish!!
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