PolarQuest's own CEO Marie Lannborn Barker was both eager and excited to share her dearest travel memory on our blog. Follow her down the memory lane, back to Svalbard 2008, and get a glimpse of all the magic she and her fellow adventurers got to experience on a 11-day cruise in July with M/S Quest.
Svalbard is magical, from the moment you arrive in Longyearbyen and later set sail for the wilderness, every single minute is true expedition!
Apart from the obvious wish to see polar bears and walrus, which we were fortunate to see many times during the trip, there were so many other aspects of this Svalbard trip that made it a journey of a lifetime. Our 11-day trip on the M/S Quest was filled with joy and companionship. It was a group of like-minded travellers who, just like me, were very curious and eager to learn about natural history, geology, glaciology, history of the early polar explorers and much more.
During the trip there were many moments of rapid weather changes and beautiful settings, and we got to experience an especially memorable one while we headed out in the Zodiacs during an early morning, and later on returned to the ship as the fog lifted, revealing the colours of the astonishing landscape surrounding us in Hornsund. Other moments of minor miracles, such as watching the ivory gull feeding in front of a glacier, seeing ice shapes like stolen out of fairytales, the surprisingly lush and green playgrounds under the grand bird cliffs, enjoyed by young foxes, the many shades of grey on a rainy day, the many colours of ice in different light, seals popping their heads out of the water to have a curious look at us in the Zodiac, the warm welcome of our Russian guide in Barentsburg, Kitiwakes nesting on the window ledges in the village.. and much more.
As someone told me – “on an expedition cruise you need to be in the moment, there is nothing else but now”. This is what makes a Svalbard expedition so special. Having this experience in the magnificent archipelago of Svalbard, on a friendly and homely ship like M/S Quest, with all these lovely fellow adventurers to share the moment with, makes it a trip that I will never forget.
Please note: Depending on the lens used for a photo or video shot an animal may appear to be closer than it is. We always follow strict wildlife guidelines to ensure that we do not cause any disturbance.
