Into the Arctic Ocean and onwards to Bjornoya

Rosinis heads to Svalbard
Bob Hendicott
Sat 14 Jul 2018 10:07
Our passage through the leads between the islands north of Tromso was initially in almost no wind, but it gradually filled in and we had some excellent beating in spectacular mountain scenery, arriving in Torsvag at 2200 on Tuesday and having had a good shake out for the new crew.  After exploring ashore in this remote outpost looking north into the Barents Sea, it was well after midnight before we got to bed.  Our final departure from Norway the next morning was in bright sunshine and under clear blue skies.  However, it was calm as we motored due north across a glassy sea interrupted only by a mild swell rolling in from the north west.  And so it continued for the whole day, the only excitement being a couple of whale sightings (grampus, pilot whales or small minkes: we weren’t sure).  By 1900 we had lost land astern and could have been anywhere, but had a sharp reminder of exactly where we’re heading as a bank of low cloud rolled in from the west, removing any chance of midnight sun, and causing the temperature to plummet.
 
This morning, almost exactly 24 hours after setting off, the wind suddenly picked up and since then we’ve had some great sailing at good speed and in just the right direction.  But it has stayed cold, with some fog this afternoon, and we were ready for a superb meal of baked cod cooked by Meryon this evening, the cod given to us by fishermen in Torsvag.  We’ve seen the occasional ship heading to Archangel and had a chat on the VHF with a fishing boat we passed very close to, but otherwise we’re completely on our own.  As I write this in the middle of the night we’re only 55nm south of Bjornoya, making really good time, and we hope to be at anchor there around breakfast time.
 
Picking up the thread again, we’ve now been at Bjornoya for 24 hours, at anchor in Kvalrossbukta at the south of the island where there are the remains of an 18th century whaling station.  It’s bleak, windy and cold.  We first saw land at a range of about 2 nm as cliffs and huge rock stacks emerged from the fog that had accompanied us for much of the ‘night’.  Yesterday afternoon we planned to go ashore which is the point at which we were reminded of the date (Fri 13th).  Bad luck comes in threes and we’ve had our three (I hope).  First we found a puncture in the dinghy, successfully repaired.  Then we discovered that the outboard motor was seized, which presented a bit more of a problem.  Finally, we found that the heads wouldn’t pump water in, which took a couple of hours to fix and, for obvious personal comfort reasons took priority over continued work on the outboard.  So work on the outboard engine commenced again this morning and we think we’re close to fixing it, having stripped it down to crank case level – in the cockpit at 74N – all a bit bizarre really, but a sharp reminder that there’s no help within hundreds of miles. 
 
A brief message from Giles: Iso and Hector, we saw an Atlantic White Sided Dolphin swimming very close to us and looking at us to see who we were.   Lots of birds too and they make a big noise as we mend the outboard on Bear Island.  I hope you are being good for mummy.  Daddy x
 
We’re sending this over the satellite phone, so just one photo to give a flavour of Bjornoya.  More to follow when we next have broadband.  We leave shortly heading another 200nm north to Svalbard.

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