Svalbard & Jan Mayen

In 2024, I decided to do something out of character: go on a sailing expedition. And not just any expedition, but from Iceland to Svalbard onboard SV Tilvera in the early season! It took us, a crew of 14, 11 days to sail through the Arctic Ocean. Here is a fact: This type of journey is not for everyone, and at the time, I didn't even know if it was for me or if I could handle it. We experienced 5.5-meter waves 45-knot winds, and a freezing -37 Celsius. 10 of us got seasick along the way. Thankfully, I was one of the lucky ones that didn't get sick. We anchored for one night by Jan Mayen Island. Jan Mayen has a population of 8 scientists, 600,000 breeding pairs of sea birds, and sometimes, polar bears. It also is an island with a 2,277-meter high volcano which is the ONLY active volcano in Norway. We planned to go on land by dinghy, but strong winds and pouring rain made it too risky so we instead took turns to watch the anchor (something that had to be done). Ultimately, this expedition was a once-in-a-lifetime experience and I couldn't have asked to do it with better people. Our ketch was also a fantastic boat to sail on (and yes, everyone on board got to get under the helm and steer). When we reached the docks on Svalbard and took our first steps on stable grounds, it was like going through a finish line. People greeted us and we got favorable weather. The weather on Svalbard was surprisingly good. there was no wind nor snowing (but being April, there was snow on the ground). We celebrated our successful journey that evening on board and after that, went our own merry way. I highly recommend anyone who’s thinking of going to Svalbard to just go! Take the step, you won’t regret it.

You can read more of our expedition on Tilvera’s blog here.