Swing in the air

When people think about the Arctic in winter, one of the thoughts is usually coldness. It has to be cold, constantly. Yep, often it's so, but not constantly. It's kind of normal to have some plus Celcius-degrees suddenly even middle of winter. And anyhow temperature is swinging strongly especially in winters.

In this weekend we had that kind of warm period. Just a week ago we had temperatures down around -30C, yesterday there were up to 4,5 plus-degrees and pouring rain - relatively, as much as it can be pouring in our half desert climate. Storm pushed ice away from part of Isfjorden and and sea was black and unwelcoming. Today it's fortunately colder again and precipitation comes down with form of snow and we have got some new drift-ice in the fjord. Storm is welcomed as long as precipitation is coming down as snow. That's just good for scooter season - and also for reindeers.

Weather is actually quite fascinating subject to talk about. Especially nowadays, when there has been so much talk about changing climate caused by human activity. Climate is getting warmer, especially in the Arctic areas. And that seems to cause very cold and snowy winters in the mainland, strangely enough. There seems to be logic with this, but the issue is pretty complicated.

In the picture you can see what kind of temperatures we had last year. Notice the warm periods during the coldest winter time!

http://www.yr.no/sted/Norge/Svalbard/Longyearbyen/statistikk.html

My valuable friend

I just delivered rest of my salary to a garage which is fixing snow scooters and now my red friend should be ready for a new good season. All the worn parts have been changed with new spare parts. Now we just need good driving conditions over the season!

With owning and using a scooter is giving me kind of equivocal feelings. Driving around isn't ecological, not even I'm having a fire-stroke which is using less fuel than two-strokes. And of course owning a scooter isn't anyhow necessary. But it's nice to have it, that I have to admit. It gives so much freedom and possibility to explore the island in longer distances from the town. We were again last weekend in a cabin. Just packed everything, including our dog, on the sledges on Friday and spend a nice and peaceful weekend between the mountains. There were a track of a polar bear passing by our cabin which reminded us to take care of the safety. Without scooters we couldn't have that kind of weekends out of the town. Trips don't need to be that kind of weekend trips, it can be just a day trip to Barentsburg, our Russian neighbour town, or after a work day a little trip to look a blue glacier front or exploring in an ice gave inside a glacier. When we're out on a trip I'm really happy about my valuable friend :)

A lunatic person

I haven't been thinking how moon-struck I'm before I moved to Svalbard. Suddenly the moon got so important for me! In the dark time I'm waiting forward to get a full moon. It just gives amazingly much light. In the summer time we don't see the moon in the Arctic areas, because a full moon is always under the horizon. It feels always fascinating to get the moon back in August.

February is one of the most beautiful months here in Svalbard. Then we can see the moon almost in all possible lightning.

The full moon is just wonderful in the dark time. The seed vault with it's ice-blue light.

The mountains are glowing magically in the light of the full moon - that's totally enough light for to be walking around!

The full moon combined with the pastel pink and purple is just breath-taking.

The moon over Isfjorden.

Our church.

On the left Cableway central for coal transportation (taubanesentral) and the constructions of the cableway (taubanebukker).

In February we have also that magical blue light. What could be better than combine that with the moon?

A Sami style hut by Villmarkssenter.

We got the Sun back!

16th of February the Sun was first time over the horizon since 26th of October. Unfortunately I haven't yet got a chance to see it - I have needed to be satisfied with a pink stripe on the top of the Hiorthfjellet, the mountain facing to Longyearbyen. It's not yet possible to see the Sun down in the valleys but you need to go up on some mountain. Sometimes it's boring to be a working person... But it's just imaging how quickly days are getting longer. A week ago we didn't have any Sun, now we're already having it from 9:30am to almost 3pm. Just one month more and then we're having longer days than people in more south!

The Sun shining on the top of the Hiorthfjellet.

The town is still in a shadow, but we can admire pink colour in the top of the mountains.

The southern sides of the mountains have got a pink coloration.

Pink world

It looks like we're living in a pinky fairy-tale world.

Wandering polar bears

We had Friday evening a walk to Hiorthhamn over Advendfjorden with dogs. Next morning we heard that there have been a polar bear visiting the dog yard. He were chased to the fjord. On that evening we didn't have our trip over the fjord, but day after we were back on our normal routines. Then we saw that the polar bear had followed our spoor from Hiorthhamn all the way over Adventfjorden close by Snøskooterutleie (SSU) and turned then to the dog yard. Here in the picture you can see our steps on left, a track of a dog on the middle and our white companion on right.

Spoor of our friend.

His footprint is on a respectful size.
Ammunition cal 30-06.

Closer to Hiorthhamn we saw that our unseen companion weren't the only bear around - there were also the bigger fellow around.

"Our bear" goes towards the town, the other track continues to the Advendtdalen.

After that first bear there have been several bear observations around. A bear has been chased away from Bjørndalen and once more from the dog yard. Now there is a polar bear track just some hundred of meter from SSU. And it's not only Longyearbyen in Spitsbergen-island where bears have been visiting: Also our Russian neighbours in Barentsburg have got a visit. There a bear broke a traffic sign warning about polar bear danger. Isfjorden Radio have also got a white-fured visitors. In Hornsund a passer-by killed one dog and two got injured.

Even though we know there is scrappy wanderers around, we go anyhow outside of the town on our trips. But of course, now we're extra observant for unwanted visitors. Usually we're having only with a signal pen on our short trips outside of the town, but now we're happily carrying also signal pistol with us as an addition for a rifle. Anyhow, we're also having dogs with us, so we're counting for that they notice first spooky things in the darkness.

A polar bear visiting the town

Then we got the first polar bear visit for this year. He was close by the dog yard when he got observed the first time. He weren't allowed to hang around the town, so he was chased out to the Advendfjorden.

It was kind of nice to get a reminder that our white friend is around. But, we needed to reorganise our trip with dogs because of that: We're having almost every evening a tour to Hiorthhamn with our dogs over the delta or ice in Adventfjorden. Today we didn't do that...

The polar bear in the picture isn't todays bear, but a furry fellow we met last year, having good time in Petuniabukta with newborn seal pups.

"Når lyset kommer"

How happy you can get about light!!!

("Når lyset kommer" = "When the light comes" is a movie, telling a story from Svalbard)

Mission impossible: Warm toes?

My Mukluks have arrived!!! They are tested in our normal walking trips and approved to keep their promises, at least as a first impression. Yesterday we had a little bit longer than two hours trip in -28 Celcius degrees and my toes were never cold during that trip. Temperature for todays trip was partly lower than -30 degrees and I was still having warm toes. It felt almost unreal... And shoes are just so incredible soft and light-weighted to walk with, compared with my old good Sorels. I'm totally impressed!

Now I have been wearing those thin alpaca socks I bought earlier and one pair of thick slightly felted woollen socks. Instead of the original woollen inner soles I took on use inner soles made of reindeer. I just got ready my new socks, made of alpaca-wool mix. With that combination I'm hoping to survive over our best outdoor season with less pain than what I'm normally having. I just wonder if I should also felt slightly my new socks. Then they would be little bit firmer but also more durable, I hope. The best side of wool isn't its durability, unfortunately.

Blue is beautiful

We had a brilliant holiday, but it's really nice to be back at home again. This time of year is just so beautiful. I'm waking up every morning in happy mood and waiting excitingly how light it will be today. Taking a dog out in -28 Celsius is just a pleasure.

A scooter season has started, no doubt. That we can unfortunately also see about that, that there have been already the first scooter accidents. Last weekend two scooters broke through the sea ice. Drivers had luck with them and there were no injuries. One man with serious injuries is send with an ambulance plane to Tromsø after a free fall about ten meters with scooter. And one scooter went up in flames in a tour and left behind an unhappy scooter owner. My good friend Yamaha just ate almost a half of my monthly salary with his service - and he still needs some new parts with almost same value. But that didn't give any physical injuries for anyone :)

Winter in Denmark

It was really nice to duck out in totally different world for just a little while. There have been quite amount of snow in Denmark earlier in this winter, were we told, but now there was about none left. But there were a thin layer of ice on the lakes. That was cool!

All the Scandinavian languages are pretty close to each other. If you can speak one of them, you'll somehow survive where-ever in Scandinavia; meaning Norway, Sweden and Denmark. As Norwegian speaking you just need to get used for Danish way to pronounce the words and of course learn some basic words which are different. I was communicating with those Danes by talking Norwegian for them and they answered Danish for me - and somehow we understood each others at least mostly. Kind of strange way to chat, but it's working :)

When we were in the mainland, meant it also that we had a possibility to fill in our stocks, buy the things which can't be bought here in Svalbard. So, we fly to Denmark with half-emptly baggages and fly back with tightly packed loads. Now we can again manage easily again until next holiday :)

Drengene fra Angora - Blind Date

Danish music... That can happen in a blind date as well, I guess.