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Spitsbergen, Greenland and Iceland Birdwatching Tour
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Spitsbergen, Greenland and Iceland Birdwatching Tour
When: Thu 22 Jul - Wed 4 Aug 2010
Leader: Chris Doughty |
Spitsbergen, Greeland and Iceland Birdwatching Tour
Cost of verths range from Triple cabing $6,320
Twin cabin $8,850, with private bathroom $9,350
Cruise package Longyearbyen to Reykjavik (14 days) |
| This expedition cruise offers a once in a lifetime opportunity to visit one of the most remote and spectacular places on earth; enjoying close encounters with seldom-seen animal and bird life, both at sea and on shore, whilst enjoying the comfort and safety of our expedition cruise ship the 'Akademik Ioffe`. This Spitsbergen, Greenland and Iceland Birdwatching Tour heads across the Barents Sea from Norway toward the North Pole and at the edge of the pack ice there is a small, isolated group of islands called Svalbard. The largest of the islands is Spitzbergen, which is a Dutch word meaning 'pointed mountains'; it is one of the few untouched wilderness areas left in the world today. It is a dramatic land of huge glaciers, snow-covered mountains and steep sided fjords, separated from the North Pole by a mere 965 kilometres of frozen ocean. This is the true 'High Arctic', an extreme land gripped by ice for over eight months of the year and by darkness for over four. During the brief arctic summer Spitsbergen is transformed into a land of perpetual daylight, carpeted by flower-covered tundra that is grazed by herds of Reindeer. Towering sea cliffs are crowded with millions of seabirds and offshore there is a crazy paving of pack ice upon which 20 percent of the world's Polar Bears are found. Large numbers of Ringed and Bearded Seals can be seen along the coast, but even more spectacular are the bizarre Walrus, which haul themselves onto the ice floes. Leaving Spitsbergen, we head west across the Greenland Sea and work our way south along the east coast of Greenland. Here too, the scenery is spectacular and the wildlife plentiful; there is even the chance of observing the critically endangered Narwhal. Continuing southwards we cross the Denmark Strait and begin our exploration of the volcanic island of Iceland. To the casual observer, Iceland is a land of peaceful tranquility, where longhaired sheep graze on verdant grasslands, adjacent to traditional sod-roofed farmhouses, the centuries-old legacies of a Viking and Norse heritage. Yet under the surface, the immense natural forces of earthquakes, volcanoes and glaciers are still shaping the island. Seventeen species of whales cruise Icelandic waters and we are likely to enjoy some spectacular views of these magnificent creatures breaching close to the ship and, both Common and Grey Seals frequent the beaches. The island's upraised cliffs, magnificently sculpted by wind and sea, provide perfect habitat for seabirds, which occur in the hundreds of thousands. We will observe enormous numbers of puffins and guillemots and scan the cliffs for Gyrfalcon, Merlin and the very impressive White-tailed Eagle. |
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