Sep 2313 min read

Rugged and Remote Spitsbergen

Updated: Sep 26

12th-13th June 2024 Newcastle and North Sea crossing

Rugged and Remote Spitsbergen © Brian Tollitt/OWE

OWE spitsbergen 2024 team. from left, Anthony Brandreth, Russell Neave, Brian Tollitt, Emma Neave-Webb

MV Balmoral left the port of Tyne and Wear bearing north-east towards the Norwegian coast. Grey and overcast days but flat calm water. Kittiwakes, gannets, guillemots, razorbills, puffins and a few Manx shearwaters entertained the birdwatchers as the vessel navigated the gas and oil rigs between British and Norwegian waters. Half-way between Scotland and Norway a common starling joined on the afternoon of the12th but, after a diet comprised mostly of Twiglets, had departed by the afternoon of 13th.

Twiglet Starling © Russell Neave/OWE

North Sea Rig © Brian Tollitt/OWE

There were low numbers of minke whale and harbour porpoise, but the highlight was seven killer whales close in on the evening of the 13th. The unmistakeable fin of the large bull appeared and the “Orca” shout went out, just as many people were in the dining rooms. This timely appearance enabled lots of people to head for the windows to get a view. Many others were fortunate to see the animals from on deck, their own rooms and others caught up from the stern as the pod remained active hunting fish in and near the wake until lost from sight.

There is much discussion about whether to call these animals orca or killer whale. The Norwegian name is Spekkhogger which roughly translates as blubber chopper. Whatever they are named their sighting brought out the inner child in grown adults and led to the telling of stories and making of shared memories into the evening and well into the next day.

14th June, Alesund, Norway

Docking early in the morning for a full day on one of the warmest, sunniest days of the Norwegian summer to date, allowed the town and areas around the Alesund archipelago, Gody and Giske islands and the snow-capped Sunnmore Alps, to be fully appreciated. The 418 steps up Mount Aksla tempted many guests whilst others enjoyed the street scene, shopping, sculptures, beautiful buildings and parkland with magnificent ash, beech and sycamore trees.

Fieldfare juvenile bathing © Brian Tollitt/OWE

Birds in and around the town included newly fledged coal tit, fieldfare and nuthatch with common swift, chiffchaff, blackcap, willow warbler, greenfinch, wren, grey heron, goosander, northern wheatear, magpie and siskin as supporting cast. Hooded crow, common gull and common eider were around waterside areas.

Hooded Crow © Brian Tollitt/OWE

Common Gull © Brian Tollitt/OWE

In the evening, after leaving Alesund, and bearing due north, a small dark whale emerged vertically from the blackish water “like a set of curling tongs”. This was a Sowerby’s beaked whale and only later, from photographs, was it possible to see that it seemed to have a damaged or deformed beak.

Named by James Sowerby (1757-1822) who was “brought up in the age of enlightenment and studied at the Royal Academy and regarded as an outstanding artist and natural historian, producing beautiful, scientific books of plants, fungi, animals, fossils and minerals. He was active in the period between the death of Linnaeus (the father of modern taxonomy) and the rise of Charles Darwin” (ref : Kew publishing/Natural History Museum, 2015).

In 1804, after seeing the skull of an animal which stranded in the Moray Firth, Sowerby gave it the latin-greek name; Mesoplodon (a toothed whale) bidens (with two teeth) making it the first of the many species of beaked whales to be scientifically recognised. Other names given to the animal are North Atlantic beaked whale or North Sea beaked whale.

Black legged Kittiwake north of Alesund © Brian Tollitt/OWE

The air temperature was already dropping, and the quick disappearance of the whale made it a good time to end an evening seawatch, which, over the day, saw at least 600 fulmar, 3 common guillemot, 20 each of northern gannet and black legged kittiwake, 3 Atlantic puffin, 3 red-throated diver, 8 great cormorant, 2 oystercatcher, 5 pomarine skua, a harbour porpoise and 4 minke whales.

15th-16th June, at sea

Balmoral was now full steam ahead for two sea days, ploughing north to Spitsbergen over the Norwegian Sea, crossing the Arctic circle at 0400 hours on the 16th. The morning of the 15th was choppy so we saw very little apart from a small pod of killer whales. By the afternoon (and through the 16th) things had calmed into a beautiful day with deep blue sky and mackerel clouds.

Orca north of Alesund © Brian Tollitt/OWE

Wildlife watchers aboard Balmoral approaching Spitsbergen © Anthony Brandreth/OWE

We started to see sperm whales (12), northern bottlenose whales (11) and more killer whales, which by the end of the day totalled 28. A fortunate few saw a humpback whale breach and there were two long-finned pilot whales. Sowerby’s beaked whales (4) were seen by more people. Unidentified to species were six beaked whales and one rorqual (baleen) whale. At least one passenger, and experienced whale watcher, was able to photograph a probable blue whale too.

Sperm Whale north of Alesund © Brian Tollitt/OWE

There was one great skua, a pomarine skua and the first of the Spitsbergen-Svalbard breeding Atlantic puffin.

Pomarine Skua north of Alesund © Brian Tollitt/OWE

Fulmars seemed to be ever present, effortlessly riding the winds at the stern and alongside often at eye level and only a few metres away. We estimated at least 1500 over the two days with the first darker plumaged “blue morph” northern fulmars amongst them. As the ship progressed north the “blue morph” quickly outnumbered the more southerly breeding paler morph which was to be expected as they can breed as far north as 10 degrees from the north pole. It’s not really understood why the blue morph is dominant further north.

Northern Fulmar in stereo north of Alesund © Brian Tollitt/OWE

The name fulmar originates in Old Norse meaning ‘foul gull’, referring to the ability of adults and nestlings to projectile vomit smelly, tacky, stomach oil from their beaks at potential threats as well as accurately shooting from their back end too.

'Blue morph' Northen Fulmar at the paler end of the spectrum, north of Alesund © Brian Tollitt/OWE

Those who arose very early on the 16th were treated to seeing 18 humpback whales feeding and through the day nine fin whales and 42 white-beaked dolphins were logged. The bird highlight of the day was a breeding plumaged American golden plover which briefly circled the ship.

The wind got up again late on the 16th with squalls and a lumpy sea state. This didn’t seem to matter one bit to the seabirds and we were able to see commuting groups of little auks and Brunnich’s guillemots hustling back to their breeding sites. In no time at all over 2,000 and 800, respectively, had passed by.

Little Auks © Brian Tollitt/OWE

England played Serbia in the Euros in the evening, and as previously, with the Scotland team, the less said the better about the performance. More relevant, was that the OWE team continued to give on deck wildlife watching guidance and support throughout the day and also performed the first of two binocular workshops, and a second sell-out presentation in the fabulous Neptune Lounge.

17th-18th June, Longyearben

Balmoral approaching Spitsbergen © Brian Tollitt/OWE

Approaching Longyearbyen © Brian Tollitt/OWE

Mandt's Black Guillemots on approach to Longyearbyen © Brian Tollitt/OWE

The 17th dawned bright with a smooth sea state and after just over 1,500 nautical miles since leaving Newcastle the snow etched peaks of Spitsbergen came into view off the starboard side. Fulmars were again the dominant bird, with the darker northern type being in the majority. On the approaches, eight minke whales, three walruses, two Sowerby’s beaked whales and a single harp seal were noted.

Walruses hauled out on approach to Longyearbyen © Anthony Brandreth/OWE

By 10am, after passing a hauled-out huddle of walrus, Balmoral was docked at Longyearben, at 78 degrees north, the world’s most northerly settlement. The day continued to be calm and beautiful, and it remained 12 degrees Celsius at midnight. Between 11pm and 2am the sun simply didn’t get anywhere near the horizon. It was such a beautiful day it was very difficult to want to go to bed, however, the bird activity did seem to slow a little. Even the Arctic terns, which, by migrating between Arctic and Antarctic waters experience more daylight than any other animal, seemed to roost a while.

Arctic Tern - Longyearbyen © Brian Tollitt/OWE

The bird list became more diverse with the most obvious birds being glaucous gull, barnacle goose, arctic tern and common eider supported by purple sandpiper, snow bunting, kittiwake and black guillemot.

Mandt's Black Guillemot - Longyearbyen © Brian Tollitt/OWE

Glaucous gull adult - Longyearbyen © Brian Tollitt/OWE

Glaucous gull adult - Longyearbyen © Brian Tollitt/OWE

Glaucous gull scavenging a dead black guillemot - Longyearbyen © Brian Tollitt/OWE

The endemic Svalbard rock ptarmigan initially proved more awkward to find amongst the screes and hillsides above the town but when found had little fear of people. Some birds were paired up whilst other dirty white coloured males were having aerial chases.

Published field studies have found its favoured food plant, polar willow, benefits from the warmer microclimate and that bulbils of alpine bistort are critical to the survival of Svalbard rock ptarmigan chicks which feed themselves from the moment they hatch. There are concerns that such high dependency on a few plants, with the on-going effects of a warming climate, may have detrimental impacts on Svalbard rock ptarmigan.

Svalbard rock ptarmigan male - Longyearbyen © Brian Tollitt/OWE

Svalbard rock ptarmigan female - Longyearbyen © Brian Tollitt/OWE

Passengers who stayed up to get the full midnight sun experience were also fortunate to see breeding plumaged red phalarope on a pond near to the dog kennels at the edge of the town.

A purple sandpiper with green leg flag 'TL9' - Longyearbyen © Brian Tollitt/OWE

'Skidoo' bunting, Longyearbyen chapter © Brian Tollitt/OWE

Snow bunting male - Longyearbyen © Brian Tollitt/OWE

Barnacle goose - Longyearbyen © Brian Tollitt/OWE

Barnacle goose brooding a clutch - Longyearbyen © Brian Tollitt/OWE

A pair of arctic skuas were looking like they were about to start breeding whilst the not-so-innocent looking but pure white glaucous gulls just looked like they were keeping an eye on everything waiting for the day when chicks start to hatch so they could feed their own, which were also still yet to hatch.

Arctic skua - Longyearbyen © Brian Tollitt/OWE

Arctic skua - Longyearbyen © Brian Tollitt/OWE

Close to Balmoral, an opportunistic Arctic fox had noticed that some adult eider ducks were loafing by the shoreline and was seen to run down and simply take one off the beach. Less obvious birds seen were a close inshore raft of 30 long-tailed ducks and small numbers of ringed plovers (sub species tundrae) and dunlin (sub species schinzii or arctica).

Ringed plover (sub species tundrae) - Longyearbyen © Brian Tollitt/OWE

Common eider drake - Longyearbyen © Brian Tollitt/OWE

Common eider duck - Longyearbyen © Brian Tollitt/OWE

Common eider drake - Longyearbyen © Brian Tollitt/OWE

Along with tours scheduled through Fred Olsen, Longyearben offers many wildlife watching trips and between the OWE team and fellow passengers great views of spectacular glaciers, fjords, mountains and wildlife were enjoyed from high specification rib boats. Several people returned with amazing photographs of wildlife and the glacial scenery. Species seen included Svalbard reindeer, bearded seal, minke whale, walrus, harp seal and king eider along with abundant fulmar, puffin (high arctic Svalbard subspecies; naumanii), black guillemot (Mandt’s black guillemot; the high artic sub species of black guillemot), little auk and Brunnich’s guillemot.

Svalbard reindeer - Longyearbyen © Brian Tollitt/OWE

Five brent geese were logged on the 17th and a mostly white barnacle goose was seen a few times with the main barnacle goose flock.

Spitbergen landscape © Brian Tollitt/OWE

The mythical snow bear of Spitsbergen © Brian Tollitt/OWE

19th-20th June. South from Spitsbergen

All too soon time had come to leave Longyearben for a few sea days bound for Hammerfest. The weather was again set fair but a gale was forecast to hit from the south. With this in mind, efforts were made to be out on deck to make the most of the calm and tranquil scenery. The water was like a mill pond and there was hardly a breath of wind. The sharply defined outline of white Spitsbergen made it easy, yet again, to stay up late to soak up the ambiance and breathe in the pure arctic air. Six white-beaked dolphins, four minke whales, four humpback whales and two sperm whales were seen on the 19th.

The 20th June was indeed the ‘longest day' in the Northern Hemisphere this year and, whilst lapping up the last distant views of Spitsbergen, very large and frequent rorqual blows were seen near the horizon to the south. By now it was shortly after 1am. Unlike many whale blows which can be mere puffs which get taken by the wind, these plumes stayed intact for ages, highlighted by the sharp low angle sunlight and crystal clear windless air. The animals themselves were hard to see but continued to exhale regularly as they got closer and slipped by the boat still puffing away as they went on their way behind the stern. The whales were either alone or in groups of 3-4 animals and from photographs were confirmed as a mixed group of blue and fin whales and the feeling was that there may well have been both adults and calves.

In binoculars, the plumes were so wide at the base, columnar and clearly made by the largest mammals to have ever graced our beautiful blue planet. Almost as soon as the last of the whales had passed the ship, and as abruptly as the sightings started, they stopped. Very soon the leading edge of the clouds encroached, the swell increased and it was time for bed.

Not too many passengers were around but for those still awake this whale watching experience transcended tiredness and is likely to stick for life. With refection, the sighting may be similar to what the whalers first saw before decimating whale populations. It’s a good news story of our time that many whales are at long last slowly recovering from these impacts. This sighting alone highlights the value of having coordinated international strategies and national policies in place to protect species and important areas and our gratitude goes to those that have and still work relentlessly in favour of sustainably managing oceanic and sea floor resources for now and future generations.

The storm was still with us in the morning and as we passed east of Bear Island had become a force 8 gale with rain. A lone brent goose headed towards the island. Balmoral was stable and ploughed on south but the potential for wildlife watching in the inclement conditions wasn’t great so time to catch up on sleep before reaching Hammerfest.

Bird sightings at sea on the 20th were dominated by 400 kittiwakes, with less than 10 each of greater black-backed, lesser black-backed, common and herring gulls. Three Pomarine skua were the highlight. Unexpectedly, there were no auks. Closer to Hammerfest there was a white-tailed eagle and, on the approaches, just one harbour porpoise.

Hammerfest is recognised as the world's most northerly urbanised settlement but still connected to expansive mountainous habitats. Around the harbour were nesting kittiwakes and a few oystercatchers. Unfortunately, it rained heavily all day but walking through and out of town, enabled a few birds to be seen including four redpolls, two willow warblers, two magpies, two redshanks, five golden plovers, one northern wheatear, two red-throated diver, a meadow pipit, a white wagtail and a male mallard. A common snipe was also logged.

The reindeer here are larger than those on Svalbard and roamed freely around town and were well into their summer moult. As the animals shook to shed the rain their long hairs easily fell out leaving the road surface covered. Seeing them so closely allows appreciation of their arctic adaptations including large round hooves which change shape over the course of the year. Not an arctic adaptation, but their soft, flat, summer feet allow the animals to move silently on tarmac.

21st June, Alta

Balmoral was now heading south along the Norwegian coast through spectacular fjords and mountainous backdrops lined with colourfully painted wooden houses. Rumour is that many are painted deep Falu red as this was at one time the cheapest available paint and over time it has become part of the landscape vernacular.

Balmoral docked early in Alta allowing for many excursions to be taken by passengers. These included visiting the Alta river, still one of the best salmon rivers in Europe, where white-tailed eagles were hanging out allowing great views. Other passengers marvelled at the World Heritage Site in nearby Hjemmeluft where some of the rock carvings are estimated to date back to 4,200BC.

The OWE team spent the time seeking out wildlife locally and managed to see plenty of fieldfares with fledglings, common redpoll, hooded crow, red-breasted merganser, skylark, pied flycatcher, tree sparrow, reed bunting, whitethroat, willow warbler, crossbill, song thrush and, behind the airport, three common cranes, 45 wigeons, 35 greylag geese and a curlew. Interesting invertebrates included a white-spotted sable moth. Mammal-wise a brown hare also put in an appearance close to where Balmoral was docked.

Balmoral left late in the day taking an inner route through the fjords which was again incredibly picturesque but low in terms of birds and cetaceans with just one harbour porpoise seen near Alta.

22nd-23rd June. Tromso to Kristiansund

Still north of the Arctic circle with scenic cruising through the inner fjords, continuing bound for Tromso, the largest of Norway’s urbanised northern cities. Similarly to the previous day there were few cetaceans, just one harbour porpoise and two minke whales.

Larger gulls dominated the bird cast supported by two black guillemots, 400 common eiders, two great cormorant, 25 barnacle geese and on land around the towns there were ten grey herons, three common starlings, 30 fieldfares, four great tits and a white-tailed eagle. A group of seven male velvet scoters added a little to the diversity.

Balmoral crossed the Arctic circle again on the 23rd June and as captain Steffan dryly, unlike the wet windy weather, observed, "back into tropical Norwegian waters". The crew and pilots were taking Balmoral through tight winding fjords as we passed the Lofoten Islands and amazing scenery including the granite monolith of Torghatten mountain with its cavernous see-through hole. As we passed the Seven Sisters mountains the weather had really closed in. There were few cetaceans although one group of 40 long-finned pilot whales and four killer whales were seen by patient stalwart watchers.

24th-25th June. West over the North Sea

There were very few birds and just four minke whales as we headed west 601 miles to Newcastle and, unfortunately, long periods of seeing very little, however, this allowed everyone time to say farewells, reminisce about the 3,493 mile cruise and to pack our bags ready for the journey home.

Our appreciation goes to Fred Olsen Cruise Lines, the crew and teams working so hard behind the scenes to keep safe, entertain, feed and clean for guests on Balmoral. To Peel Talent for enabling Ocean Wildlife Encounters to support this cruise, and to all of the guests who spent time, shared stories and knowledge with us, laughed at our attempted funnies or attended any of the lectures and binocular workshops presented by the team. Thank you all.

Rugged and Remote Spitsbergen

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