SVALBARD LANDSCAPE

David J Slater,  SVALBARD, Norway, August 2010

On my trip I saw very little wildlife, so it was the scenery that more than made up for the loss.  Often the light here is dramatic - storm clouds or beautiful golden light, that when coupled with the amazing landforms and silky smooth seas can make photography a pleasure.  Below are just a few of my images I hope you will enjoy.  Click the above links to be taken to the wildlife galleries.

A solitary house in a majestic setting.  Taken in Isfjorden just outside of Longyearbyen, the main town on Svalbard.

One of those special moments when light and land meet.

Deep within a fjord the sea can become very still allowing good reflections.

Hornsund Whaling 03



In death there can be beauty?  One of the saddest sights on Svalbard are the remains of whales in their thousands.  Worse, the whaling history seems to be a major focus of the tourism industry here with no hint of the for-profit-only barbarism being spoken.  The Norwegian culture of Svalbard of course obsessed with the glorification and history of hunting and whaling, and my guide was no exception. The scale of the abuse of the planet here was immense and was something I found upsetting - a wilderness raped by human beings and for what - lamp oil and supports in corsets and umbrellas for upper class Anglo-American Georgians and Victorians!






Wilhelmoya 03



Me and my shadow casts across frost polygons in the peat.




Hornsund 01


The famous peaks in Hornsund Fjord.  Even in summer, some sea ice still exists





Hornsund 15


A hole in a small iceberg, or growler, frames Hornsuntinden, the 5th highest mountain on Svalbard (and below)





Hornsund 03







Hornsund 02



Hornsundtinden, a majestic peak, towers over a glacier.





Wilhelmoya 01



A remote small fjord on the east coast of Spitsbergen was the superb setting for the Noorderlicht schooner..





Trygghamna 01 crop



The midnight sun often shone below a bank of cloud resulting in a low narrow strip of golden light on the opposite mountains



Hinlopstretet 01

Here it is again, this time it's midnight in the Hinlopen Strait.




              
Alkhornet 03                                                                                                                                               Alkhornet 04


Alkhornet is a famous bird cliff that is also home to Arctic Fox that feed on the birds.  The bird droppings also give nutrients to the soil resulting in a rich flora not usually seen on Svalbard.




Barentsoya 05



One of the islands off the south east coast of Spitsbergen is Barentsoya, home to many reindeer, moorland bog and stunning scenery that reminded me of Scotland.

Isfjorden 05

   A large glacier close to Longyearbyen gets all the tourists! 

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