At 78 degrees N – a mere 12 degrees from the North Pole – Longyearbyen is as far north as I’ve ever been. I’m here with my oldest daughter, to have a look at the Russian Arctic mining settlements.
Looks cool and refreshing, doesn’t it?
Svalbard is more commonly referred to as Spitsbergen in English. Spitsbergen is in fact the name of the largest island in the group, but Svalbard is the name of the entire archipelago. And let me hasten to add, it has nothing to do with Philip Pullman’s fictional winter kingdom of armoured bears. That’s a parallel universe.
Hang on one minute… Russian, you ask? Isn’t Svalbard Norwegian? It is indeed. But while the Treaty of Svalbard establishes full Norwegian sovereignty over the archipelago, it also ensures all signatory parties the right to do research and commercial activity. Such as mining.
Barentsburg is Russia’s last remaining settlement in the Arctic. However, just as interesting is the ghost town Pyramiden, abandoned on a no doubt chilly winter day in 1998. More on those two outposts later.
Grumant, another abandoned Russian settlement
More polar bears than humans
Svalbard is rugged, absurdly beautiful and has more polar bears than humans. This is Arctic wild country and a trip out of town requires a rifle for protection. About ten years ago, two students visiting from the mainland, set off to see a friend in Nybyen on the outskirts of Longyearbyen. The friend wasn’t home, so they decided to take a more roundabout, scenic walk back to town. Bad decision! As it was an impulse, they didn’t bring guns and when a bear showed up, one of the girls became dinner. The other girl saved herself by jumping down the mountainside. According to the local newspaper, the victim had tried to lie still and play dead. That doesn’t work with polar bears. Consider yourselves warned!
Svalbard has strict rules against killing polar bears, though. Self-defense is the only acceptable reason to shoot at these large, Arctic animals and a scrupulous regimen must be followed: first, fire warning shots to give the bear a chance to come to its senses and back off. If the bear still advances, it’s you or teddy. A rifle is required; no mere shotgun will do. If you do kill a bear, the incident must be reported to the sysselmann (governor of Svalbard) immediately, preferably with witnesses corroborating your story, and the carcass must be surrendered. The governor then launches an investigation.
The sight of guns, even if ever so casually slung across a shoulder, unsettles me somewhat. In mainland Norway, not even the police carry guns. But at least you can’t take the guns inside with you.
Longyearbyen, Svalbard’s capital, is an affluent city of about 2 000 residents who enjoy not only extraordinary nature and a healthy, outdoorsy lifestyle – but also very high salaries and low taxes. Naturally, the majority are Norwegians. Perhaps more surprisingly though, the largest minority group is Thais. And unlike many Western countries, Svalbard is not just home to Thai women. This miniature diaspora also counts several Thai men and whole families.
Longyearbyen
A few more Svalbard photos for you to enjoy:
Skansebukta (Skanse Bay)
Esmarkbreen (Esmark Glacier)
Lazy seal at Esmark Glacier
Alex, catching some sun. Or perhaps an Arctic nap.
See more great photos at Budget Travelers Sandbox and DeliciousbBaby.
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Wow this is great insight into a part of the world unknown to me. The pictures of the water, snow and glaciers are truly amazing! Thank you for sharing this and if I visit I’ll remember to bring my rifle. Yikes!
Debbie Beardsley @ European Travelista recently posted..Cesky Krumlov – I Want to Go There!
@Debbie – thanks
It’s actually possible to rent rifles in Longyearbyen, if you can prove you know how to use one.
Love this post! Longyearbyen sounds fascinating. You really give good insight into what it’s like to visit and what it might be like to live there. Looks so beautiful, too.
It looks cold, fresh, and inviting – with a touch of ‘The Russians are coming!’.
78˚north is a long way north – sounds great.
David Bennett recently posted..The Curve Of The Gherkin
You’re once again in an off the beaten track place with gorgeous photos to prove it. Wow! Thanks for introducing this beauty to me.
Vera Marie Badertscher recently posted..Perfect Paris Travel Movie
I hope to be visiting Longyearbyen next April for some last minute training before walking from Camp Barneo to the geographic north pole. It was great to get some insight in to the area. Thanks
@Richard – how exciting! Best of luck with that!
Seriously, carrying around a rifle? Wow. Did you see any bears?
adventureswithben recently posted..Happy 2nd Anniversary adventureswithben.com!
If you know anything about polar bears, you know how guns are a necessity. Meanest, most aggressive bears on the planet. Fantastic creatures but you don’t want to EVER get too close to one – or you wish you would have had a gun too!
Jeremy Branham recently posted..Celebrating 4th of July with Where in the world am I?
I know polar bears are supposed to be sort of mean, but I can’t help but love them! I can’t imagine anyone killing such beautiful animals, though (except for, well, self-defense).
Gorgeous photos!
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@Christy – Thanks
I’m not sure if mean is the right word. Polar bears usually only attack if they’re threatened or provoked. Or if they’re hungry – and then not to maim, but to eat. Scary as that sounds, it’s nature. I agree they are beautiful and I can’t imagine killing one either. Hope I’ll never have to.
Wow, absolutely gorgeous photos – although I don’t think I’d be setting off to take any photos on a scenic route in polar bear country. Even the sight of a gun scares me, nevermind the thought of warning shots BEFORE you have to shoot at them in fear of becoming lunch. They’re beautiful animals – at a distance.
Looking forward to more posts from here. It looks so remote.
Julia
Turkey’s For Life recently posted..Sarsala Köyü: Another Dalaman Secret
Beautiful photos, Sophie! Svarlbard is high on my list! I just watched a fantastic BBC documentary a couple of nights ago about the Svarlbard polar bears. It’s called Polar Bears: Spy on the Ice, if you are interested.
Cherina recently posted..North to Alaska
Those Russian settlements look ghostly in a very cool way.
Another fascinating post
robin recently posted..Pájaros
For someone who has not been further north than Bodø this is really fascinating. Wouldn’t want to meet one of the bear though.
Italian Notes recently posted..Insalata di carote e sedano
@Italian Notes: Well, Bodø is well north of the Arctic Circle, so that’s pretty good in itself.
These are the most breathtaking photos I’ve seen in a long time. Doesn’t seem real!
Abby recently posted..B Roll in La Boca in Buenos Aires
Unbelievably cool! Would love to go to a place where polar bears outnumber people. I’m not scared of other bears, but polar bears really do scare me, although I would still love to see one in the wild – if I was protected.
Laurel recently posted..Wine Walks in Germany
I love the different shades of ice in the first picture: the one in the front is so clean and picture perfect and the one in the back is much darker/dirtier. Nice shot!
Sabrina recently posted..Skiing in Santa Fe
Very interesting place. I’d love to see polar bears – have only seen them in zoos or Sea World. Wouldn’t want to get too close, though!
Andrea recently posted..Holiday in Colombia Part Two: Caribbean Coast
Nice pictures, but I am not sure I would love to live there even if you can get big salary .
Vi recently posted..Places for panoramic view of Rome. Pincian Hill
What a grand set of photos – especially love the contrast of the colourful houses against a snowy background. In Canada, people head to Churchill, Manitoba to see polar bears in October and November.
Curious if you’re doing an article on the life of a miner. Mu husband (a geologist) has spent a lot of summers near the Arctic Circle in Canada – with nary a polar bear in sight. Wolves are another matter.
Leigh recently posted..Travel Photo Thursday: Calgary City Lights
Sophie – nice photos! I especially like the one of the colorful houses in Longyearbyen. Are those small mountains in the back or large hills left over from a mining operation?
I’ve always wanted to see Polar Bears – thought about making a trip to Churchill in Canada. I understand making a lot of noise and waving your arms does not work like with grizzlies and browns – I guess if they are hungry, you become snack time.
Don Faust recently posted..Canadian Border Crossing Tips
Love the photos and information, as always. A polar nap? LOL
I really like the photos of the colorful houses also. Growing up in the Midwest, I guess the sight of guns isn’t that out of the ordinary.
Sensibletraveler recently posted..Photo of the Week: Fiori Di Como
Wow, this so cool! Polars bears and ghost towns, now that is my kind of trip
Beautiful shots! I especially love the one with the colored houses.
Michael Figueiredo recently posted..Travel Photo Thursday: A Rose For Lilly
Great article and I love the pictures
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Absolutely stunning. Can’t imagine going there.
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By coincidence, Channel 4 TV showed a program about polar bears in Svalbard in the series ‘Inside Nature’s Giants’ last night.
The series follows a team of doctors and scientists carrying out autopsies on elephants, giraffes and other big animals, trying to learn more about them – what they died from, what special species characteristics enables their species to live as it does, etc.
Last night’s programme was different in that it was ‘in the field’ in Svalbard and the polar bears on which they carried out autopsies were ones that the local Inuit hunters had killed for food.
Some of the things we learned are that a polar bear’s fur is not white – it is transparent and a polar bear skin is black all over.
The reason the fur looks white is because the light travels through the hollow hairs of its fur and then bounces off the black skin.
Heat is trapped in the air layer next to the skin while some light bounces off and gives the appearance that the fur is white.
Also, that polar bears are suffering from biological changes brought on by ingesting materials such as those in the flame retardants used in the plastics in computers and mobile phones.
When these products are recycled in countries like India – broken down by burning to get at the expensive metals within – the flame retardant chemicals escape into the atmosphere and are carried thousands of miles around the world and up the food chain to polar bears (and I guess to the Inuit who eat the bears).
Teams of scientists are studying how polar bears are suffering from ingesting these compounds – losing sexuality, developing tumors, becoming weaker, losing offspring.
The link to the program is here:
Polar Bear: Inside Nature’s Giant’s Special
David Bennett recently posted..The Curve Of The Gherkin
Great article! I never would have guessed a Thai population there, very interesting!
Kymri recently posted..Oh Canada! (My Top 5 Highlights of Travels in Canada)
A very interesting post on a place that I knew nothing at all about. Great images, especially that first one and the photo of the colourful houses.
Andrew Graeme Gould recently posted..Santiago, Chile: Student protests / Movilización estudiantil
Svalbard just about tops my list of travel desires. Interesting about the Russian settlements, haven’t heard much about those. Hope you’ll write about that as well.
@Tim – I will add posts about the Russian settlements in a bit – both the eerie ghost town Pyramiden and the somewhat livelier Barentsburg.
I love those colorful houses… and I’m a big fan of polar bears. I would love to see one in the wild someday… from far away.
Scott – Quirky Travel Guy recently posted..Five observations about Boston that surprised me
That landscape seems surreal! I think seeing rifles everywhere would unsettle me too. It’s pretty strange to find a place you need a gun on your back for fear of polar bears attacking. Thanks for sharing!
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Most bears attack because they think you are a threat. Playing dead sometimes works in these scenarios as they realize you are not a threat and move on. Polar bears attacks for food. Playing dead just makes it easy for them.
It is like 90 degrees and humid right now. The cold landscape looks really appealing to me right now.
Traveling Ted recently posted..Traveling Ted’s friendly down the Chicago River with Leinenkugel’s
Sophie,
You are the only person I know who has ever been to Svalbard. Great photos and interesting commentary on the polar bears and guns. Next time I’m being attacked by a polar bear I will not play dead.
Jason
Jason recently posted..Bolivian Biodiversity
I’m American, so I’m used to seeing guns
I loved this post. Svalbard looks sooo cool and stunning! I’m fascinated by the Arctic.
Love this article! The nature looks rugged and so stunning, and then those colourful houses such a cool contrast to the stark surroundings.
I’ve always wanted to go to Norway! What an amazing trip it must have been. Looking forward to reading more of your blog!!
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I love Spitsbergen and your photos are absolutely gorgeous!
Looks like an amazing place. More polar bears than humans – that’s freaky.
Polar Bear Pictures recently posted..Polar Bear Pictures
Very informative article. Next time I visit Norway this would certainly be in my destination list. Just watched a TV program on Nat Geo HD on the incident that happened 10 years ago as mentioned in the post.