Trygghamna Bay. Before we go ashore, however, we need to make sure there is no polar bear nearby. We spend a good half hour scanning the area with binoculars. We cannot give up searching for the polar predator. A human has rather little chance of survival when meeting a bear. But it is not only about our safety. The polar bear is protected and its natural daily routine should not be interfered with in any way. The presence of a human – dressed in colorful clothes – would definitely change that. What is more, I am sure that such a bear would feel sick afterwards.

But luckily there is no sign of the bear on the horizon. We anchor our boat, one of the crew rows the dinghy to the shore to check if the bear is not lurking behind some small hill. The man takes a flare gun and a rifle with him. After about fifteen minutes the helmsman calls his colleague on the shortwave:

– Hello Hello, can you hear me? Over.

– Loud and clear, over.

– What is the situation? Over.

– Clear, no sign of the polar bear, you may disembark. Over.

– I understand. Over and Out.

So we go ashore. We go to the Harrietbreenglacier , but that’s a whole other story.