ZECO TRAVEL TALK

While scouting independently along the Hornsund coast, our expedition leader Mike Messick found a polar bear lounging on a hillside. Returning to the ship, he quickly organized an excursion for everyone to observe the bear from aboard Zodiacs. Following Mike’s lead, one Zodiac moving in line behind the other, to look as non-threatening to the bear as possible, we approached the beach. From the water we reveled in the bear’s movements, each series of lumbering steps along the path gave us a view of rear paws that looked as large as hubcaps. After assessing the situation, Mike decided we could safely disembark on shore, and made sure we kept a safe distance from the bear. Read more

One of the ways in which Zegrahm Expeditions distinguishes itself is by taking advantage of serendipitous opportunities.  Described in our itinerary as an “expedition day,” today our expedition leader, Mike Messick, took advantage of our general location to take us to one of the six World Heritage Sites located in Norway. Our arrival was the first by a passenger ship of our size; nothing larger had ever anchored offshore. Undeterred by rising winds preventing zodiac landings from his first anchorage, Mike quickly arranged to have motorcoaches reach us at another location (on a Sunday!) which offered a more sheltered option.

We landed, boarded our motorcoaches, and were driven to Nes where we were introduced to the World Heritage Center and shown around the Eider Duck Museum.  Neither were the largest museums, nor the most modern, but they gave us an idea of how people in this part of Norway have made their living for centuries from what nature has bestowed upon them. Today exemplified how nimble Zegrahm Expeditions is in delivering the best possible adventure, especially on a Sunday off the coast of Norway.

Did you know?

In the Heroic Era (1901-22) of Antarctic exploration, many of the British expeditions going south passed through New Zealand, which provided a warm and cordial welcome to the explorers. Frequently, men passing through met women for whom they developed an attachment. On their return from the ice two or three years later, these associations often led to marriages between the returning explorer and the local New Zealand woman. Yet these unions seldom took place on the voyage en route south, for the men realized they faced uncertain futures in the Great White Unknown from which they might not return. Nothing so captures these poignant connections than the instance of Reginald Skelton, the chief engineer on the Discovery expedition (1901-04), who, before he left for “the South,” gave his good watch to the mother of the woman he eventually married, for he did not wish to chance its loss as he was prepared to risk his own life.

Join T. H. Baughman on our New Zealand for the Holidays voyage as he shares tales of the region’s history, combining his scholarly passion with an amazing gift for story telling.