Svalbard Islands - The Kingdom of Polar Bears

I have always been intrigued by the possibility to travel as far away from civilisation as possible. Svalbard Islands, located only 1000 km from the North Pole is just that: A rugged, glacier-covered archipelago in the middle of the Arctic Ocean and inhabited by polar bears, puffins and walruses.

I had the privilege to visit this remote corner of the easth in August, during the last days before a long and dark winter.

First of all, the polar bears aren't just a tourist catch. Every person moving in the outdoors is obliged to carry a weapon by law, because of the threat of the polar bears.

We applied for a permission to rent a gun for our hikes from the governors office. This picture is from the first day of hiking to the nearby mountaintop of Nordensjöldtoppen

During a break we took a closer look at our hired weapon. During our inspection our rented weapon-of-choice turned out to be a german military rifle from WWII, manufactured in 1943!! I have no idea how the weapon had ended up to Svalbard or whether the rental office knew what they had in their hands. To hold this unexpected piece of history was however one of the most memorable events in my life.

The next day we chose to join a guided tour to the former Soviet town of Pyramiden and the nearby glacier. Even though Soviet Union abandoned the coal mines in Pyramiden for decades ago, Russia still managers a hotel in the abandoned town, in order to keep the ownership of the terrain for purposes of Arctic policy.

The atmosphere in the abandoned Soviet town was surreal. The statues of Lenin and the famous Hammer & Sickle -emblems felt like ghosts from the cold war.

Naturally the soviets had built a megalomanic parade field in the town with the mighty glacier glancing in the background. The lawn of the field was imported from Soviet Union and is still the only lawn in the whole Svalbard.

We also got the chance to inspect the glacier on a close distance. Amazingly shining in all shades of blue and white, the glacier is used as a training ground for Svalbard University Centre's Guide School, who use it for glacier training.

Before heading back to Longyearbyen, me and my travel buddy Elias had to show why the Finns are generally considered a bit crazy. We decided to hit the beach and take a swim in the below-freezing water couple hundred meters from the glacier.

On our last day we made a combined canoeing and hiking tour to the Hjortfellet located on the other side of the fjord. Our guide warned beforehand about the challenging terrain during the hike, telling us that only about 25% of the tours made it to the top.

The descent to the mountaintop wasn't though our biggest problem. After the summit the idea was to take a mountain path to a abandoned miner's lodge and enjoy the dinner there. What we didn't know was that the path was a foot-wide levelling on a wall-steep mountain face. The new snow made it even more difficult to hike.

With good eyesight you can see the path making it's way across the face of the mountain to the hut in the background. I couldn't help thinking that in more touristy locations this track would never be open to public, even if equipped with safety ropes and regular inspection.

I captured this foto from the path down the mountain face just under my feet. I think you can get the perspective of what would have happened in case of a misstep.

Luckily we made it across the path without fatalities and the next morning it was time for the journey back home. So, how about the polar bears? Well, we managed to get a half-a-second glimpse of one during our boat trip to the glacier. However it shouldn't be kept as a certainty to see one of these majestic creatures.

Nevertheless the trip to Svalbard will be a once-in-a-lifetime experience for an adventurous traveller with confident steps and some ability to tolerate difficult circumstances. Nowadays when asked about my favourite place in the world, the Svalbard Islands always tops the list because of it's remote, rough yet unique and untouchable nature.