On the morning of National Day, we visited perhaps the most important place in Swedish polar history, Virgohamna on Danskön. It was from here that Salomon August Andrée began his fateful balloon flight to the North Pole in 1897. PolarQuest's guides blog from M/S Stockholm. Read an extract from the trip on 31 May - 8 June.
On the morning of National Day, we visited perhaps the most important place in Swedish polar history, Virgohamna on Danskön. It was from here that Salomon August Andrée began his fateful balloon flight to the North Pole in 1897. Andrée and his two companions took off in the Eagle balloon in July 1897 and were not found until 33 years later, on White Island, one of the most remote places on Earth. To this day, speculation continues about what actually became their trajectory. And although Andrée's expedition cannot be seen in retrospect as anything other than a magnificent fiasco, we must see him in the light of the times in which he set out, and all things considered, it is a truly remarkable story.
In a bay next to Virgohamna splashed what is probably the world's northernmost colony of harbour seals, actually far too far north for them but that is probably explained by the fact that they have remained here since a warm period just after the last ice age.
National Day brought glorious weather, and we continued the celebrations in the nearby Smeerenburg Fjord, where we took a rubber boat cruise in front of the magnificent Smeerenburg Glacier. Crystal-clear chunks of glacier ice bobbed in the water and flocks of common eiders flew all around us, with the occasional magnificent eider. Far from a traditional national day celebration, but a day to remember for the rest of our lives.
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.