Thursday, January 30, 2025

Karl XI Part 2

The visit to Karl XI was a little heart-wrenching. The bears on the island had clearly missed their ride on the Arctic ice and were stranded on the island until the freeze would come back. The bears had limited food supply and most likely they would all not make it through the long summer until the ice returns. One of the bears was injured and we also witnessed the saddest scene of a mother carrying her dead cub around. The cub had died at least a month before based on reports and she was still grieving.

The week before our visit there was a large controversy after a polar bear was shot by a crew on a German tourist ship after one member was attacked on land. This brought up the debate on whether this type of tourist excursion to the area where there is the risk of human interaction with the vulnerable status bears should be continued.

This particular German expedition did not participate in information sharing about bear locations as part of the treaty in the Svalbard area with 99% of boats in the area. This could have likely resulted in preventing this incident where this bear was known to be on land for several weeks. The crew has strict guidelines and share information daily on the locations of all bears in the area to avoid these types of interactions.

My personal opinion is that the more people see and learn first hand about the effects global warming and the retraction of polar ice caps have on the environment maybe they will do something to prevent further climate change issues. My eyes were opened on this trip to the realities of the shrinking of the Arctic ice by seeing first hand the impact on these amazing animals.

Latest

From Sophie Lloyd to Parkway Drive: ShipRocked Day 2 Delivers Unforgettable Moments

Monday, January 20 and day two of ShipRocked started...

Tammy’s Pontoon Party Cruise with Chelcie Lynn Returns in 2026

Comedian Chelcie Lynn and Sixthman have announced the return...

Jelly Roll and Lainey Wilson Headline Railbird Music Festival 2025

Railbird Music Festival 2025 returns to The Infield at...

Newsletter

Don't miss

From Sophie Lloyd to Parkway Drive: ShipRocked Day 2 Delivers Unforgettable Moments

Monday, January 20 and day two of ShipRocked started...

Tammy’s Pontoon Party Cruise with Chelcie Lynn Returns in 2026

Comedian Chelcie Lynn and Sixthman have announced the return...

Jelly Roll and Lainey Wilson Headline Railbird Music Festival 2025

Railbird Music Festival 2025 returns to The Infield at...

Rock the Seas in 2026: Greek Mythology Meets Rock ‘n’ Roll on ShipRocked’s Next Voyage

As we are in the midst of ShipRocked 2025...
Amy Harris
Amy Harris is a writer and photographer who has been traveling for 20 years and flown over 2 million miles to visit over 80 countries on 6 continents. She is a freelance photographer for Invision by Associated Press, AP Images and Rex/Shutterstock. Her work can be seen in various publications and websites including: Rolling Stone, AP Images, National Geographic Books, Fodor’s Travel Guides, Forbes.com, Lonely Planet Travel Guides, JetStar magazine, and Delta Sky Magazine.

From Sophie Lloyd to Parkway Drive: ShipRocked Day 2 Delivers Unforgettable Moments

Monday, January 20 and day two of ShipRocked started out with sea day brunch with our favorite carnival banana cream pie. The tasty bite...

Tammy’s Pontoon Party Cruise with Chelcie Lynn Returns in 2026

Comedian Chelcie Lynn and Sixthman have announced the return of Tammy’s Pontoon Party, sailing February 26-March 2, 2026 from Tampa, FL. The cruise, which...

Hollywood Undead, Atreyu, and Nothing More Rock Day 1 of the Retro 80s-Themed ShipRocked Cruise

On Sunday, January 19, we turned back time to the Retro 80’s themed ShipRocked cruise as it began to sail away from the port...

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here