For 20 years, I’ve wanted to see polar bears.
This past July, we traveled to Svalbard – an archipelago way north of Norway – and boarded a small ship with only 12 passengers. In the land of the midnight sun, we were often up at 1:00 am looking for wild animals.
At 80 degrees latitude north, we skimmed the water in little zodiacs and hiked hills to witness massive glaciers calving and young arctic foxes in summer brown coats. Early one mystical morning, with vibrant blue icebergs glowing against the quiet lavender sky and calm gray water, our guide Scott Davis said “This is good for the soul.” Yes, yes it is. Oh, and we did see seven polar bears: a mom with two 10-month cubs; two males traveling solo; a mom with a 20-month old male cub. He was full of antics, including juggling driftwood and diving for kelp to play with. This journey filled me up in so many ways.
Our travels with Cheesemans’ Ecology Safaris are always incredible.