Now here is a safari of a different kind: my colleague Michaela has just returned to from the trip of a lifetime: 2 weeks in the Arctic Circle!! Michaela and her partner Deon won the trip of a lifetime in the Optimal Energy “don’t be a passenger” competition. They visited places that I bet none of you have ever heard of, like Spitsbergen and Longyearbyen! What a truly unique adventure: to a place of glaciers, icebergs and the most bizarre beautiful scenery one can imagine.

Their Norwegian Arctic adventure was an 11-day expedition to experience everything Arctic: polar bears, walrus, icebergs and tundra. The cruise was aboard the Akademik Sergey Vavilov, an exploratory ice boat that went as far as 80 degrees 54 minutes North into the real pack ice, just 650 miles from the North Pole itself!

Nimble, quick and quiet, the Finnish-built Akademik Sergey Vavilov was designed to travel quietly, during hydro-acoustic research. External stabilizers and a built-in trimming system provide exceptional stability. The ship has an ice-strengthened hull and a cruising speed in open water of 14.5 knots and was able to take them right into the pack ice.

A typical day on their North Pole Safari went something like this: full breakfast followed by the first of two daily “game drives”. Dressing for game drives takes up to half at least an hour, as the layers required to venture outdoors go something like this: thermal base layer, jeans, jersey, fleece, waterproof trousers, 4 pairs socks, 2 pairs gloves, beanie, gore-tex jacket, scarf…and go!!

“Game drives” took place in Zodiac rubber ducks which are dropped into the ocean by an industrial on-board crane. Guests and guides would scan the horizon to spot the Arctic Big Five: Polar Bear, Walrus, Reindeer, Arctic Fox and the Beluga Whale. Walking safaris were also a regular feature during these outings, as long as there were no polar bears in sight (!) and one can see quite far in these vast open landscapes, which shows what a serious threat these huge animals are. Weighing in at over a ton each, they are lethal, with paws the size of your head and fangs the size of nine inch nails.

And for the twitchers there are birds galore to tick off and maybe never see again, like the Thick-billed Murre or Brünnich’s Guillemot (Uria lomvia), a bird in the auk family (Alcidae), named after the Danish zoologist Morten Thrane Brünnich. These birds are fascinating, living in massive colonies of over 300 000 on the most hectic cliffs.

In between game drives one could relax, read or take a nap in the comfortable cabins. Then your in-room intercom crackles and announces that it is time to get up for the next hearty 3 course meal or high tea. Then definitely another nap needed to properly digest food and recover, then its time to start getting ready for the next game drive. Layers layers layers!

Other highlights/optional activities were swimming in fabulous ship’s swimming pool, pumped full of the icy waters of the Arctic, 3 degrees to be exact!! Then racing into the sauna to regenerate feeling in the limbs. A braai on deck with magnificient scenery of the Arctic snow capped mountains as a backdrop. Learning all about the Arctic Zone from the various experts on board who were there to share their knowledge in each specific field: geography, birdlife, marine biology and more.

So if you ever wondered whether a safari in such a desolate freezing place at the top of the world could be fun, really enjoyable or maybe even slightly addictive, the answer is overwhelmingly YES! Michaela is already planning her South Pole safari to Antarctica.

All photos by Deon Robbertze

* Look out for more amazing pics of this Arctic journey in following posts.

The expedition was offered by Unique Destinations and is operated by Quark Expeditions

Here is a more official Expedition Summary:
Day 1 Embarkation at Longyearbyen
Day 2-4 Western Spitsbergen
Day 5-8 Smeerenburg
Day 9-10 Bourbonhamna
Day 11 Disembarkation at Longyearbyen

And the official Expedition overview:
The islands of Svalbard, including the largest, Spitsbergen, are glacier-topped mountains that rise from Arctic waters sprinkled with ice floes. Your first view will be from the air as you fly into Longyearbyen to embark.

On the west coast of Spitsbergen, cruise in Zodiacs, near a magnificent ice cliff, the 14th of July Glacier. Visit Ny Alesund, an international Arctic research station. Birders should add to their life list, as this is a known habitat for Arctic Terns, Arctic Skua, Purple Sandpipers, Common Eiders, Barnacle Geese and Snow Buntings. During this cruise itinerary, at Smeerenburg visit relics of the whaling industry, blubber ovens and whalebones. A tour of the former whaling station recounts the Dutch and Basque influences on the local community.

Phippsoya: the temperature drops as you continue northward, crossing 80° N, 965km (600 miles) from the North Pole. Polar bear and walrus are known to inhabit the waters around this island, one of the most northerly in Svalbard!

Norway’s Arctic Islands of Svalbard are so numerous that certain areas have names that reflect the profusion, Tusenoyane (Thousand Islands) for example. During this portion of the expedition itinerary, go ashore on Aekongen to seek Red-throated Divers and a whale skeleton. The narrow sound near Bourbonhamna is a favored route of beluga whales. Cruise in search for the white whales before going ashore.