> HL Cruises > Cruise liner fleet > MS BREMEN > Northwest Passage

Logbook of the Northwest Passage by Captain Mark Behrend

15/08/2006: On the way from Greenland to Pond Inlet

... how unbelievably beautiful it was here — Greenland is now behind us, an indescribable experience with magnificent weather. We touched on a continent of inconceivable dimensions. All of the ports on the western coast where we called were no deeper than a small scratch in the skin, located on the boundary between land and sea. 45,000 Greenlanders, 15,000 of them living in Nuuk. This is where the only two traffic lights of the Danish outpost (?!) are to be seen.

		But the Greenlanders are especially proud of the highest number of traffic circles per capita in the world — even though there are only five of them in total. But naturally this does not describe the fascination of the Arctic. I no longer ask why ... a waste of time. Up here, you get to know people above all. Not just the natives, whose lives are shaped by being with one another. We also get to know ourselves. We are still at the beginning: only a few have put aside their inner clock and their watches — not everyone has reached the right operating temperature. But a certain fascination is beginning to spread. While it was the land itself, hidden under a layer of ice up to 3,000 m thick, which cast its

spell on us in the last few days, now it is the proximity to historical events that attracts our attention. The fascination of failure, the sense of closeness to past
catastrophes and tragedies, without having personally been affected by them. What is this force in us that drives us to understand, to grasp and to direct everything ... even to dominate? And once we have finally succeeded, any further interest vanishes with the wind. Is it the fascination of the endless expanses, the towering cliffs, the massive formations of
ice? Or does all of this ultimately end in a certain attraction to our own vulnerability?

So once again I start asking questions about the reasons ... a waste of time. Our experiences are simply wonderful — and I'm already looking forward to tomorrow: that's enough!

We left Greenland with optimal equipment on board. Good to see that the trouble we took in the past has been rewarded and that the advance calculations matched reality.

Tomorrow we will have an Arctic meeting with the guests, later with the crew, to prepare them for what is to come, to provide information, awaken interest, calm worries and give them things to think about ... simply take away their doubts without giving them certainty — that's possible! Although, after talking to a lot of people today, I am sure that many would even try on Franklin's leather soles just "to get through".

The guests proudly wear their blue Northwest Passage jackets when they are strolling around in the superstructure as well as on the outer decks — just like a 12-year-old wearing the international team's jersey during the football World Cup. Blue jackets: we still have to get used to this colour.

For a start, we will head west until we reach Pond Inlet. The satellite system is functioning well so that we have free access to the Canadian ice charts at any time via the Internet. We are extraordinarily lucky in having Capt. Norman Thomas on board as our ice-master.

The ice is developing just the way we want. Will we have to be concerned about showing our guests any ice at all during the first part of the cruise? Peel Sound has been virtually free of ice since today. Is this too much of a good thing? The guests don't know yet that we want to sail through James Ross Strait — via Gjöa Haven — Simpson Strait. This way, we will be able to avoid the largest ice barriers in Victoria Strait. That will save fuel — we will see if it is easier on our nerves. I would not have decided on this route without the charts which Capt. Norman Thomas brought along with him. I learned from him today that the barrels marking the two straits had not been put into

place until about two days before our arrival. It is not surprising that he knows these two straits like the back of his hand because he has taken this route about 40 times in his icebreaker, which has a draught of about 6 m.

In the western Arctic, the ice is moving about 8 nautical miles a day from the coast to the northwest; the share of old ice is declining substantially. Especially the barrier against the Arctic pack which is normally formed by the one-year-old ice was significantly smaller this year. So there were more floes than usual along the American coast. In any case, the North Slope, the voyage along the Alaskan coast, will be the most demanding part of the passage.

Capt. Norman Thomas wrote to me just a little less than two weeks ago: "But finally the current will win!" The way it looks now, both he and the monthly forecast for August will be right. The cruise could not have been scheduled for a better time.

Amundsen reached Nome on 31/8. We will be there 3 days after him - plus 100 years!

Best wishes and many thanks for all of the preparations, the ongoing support and all of the crossed fingers.

Best regards.
Mark Behrend
Captain MS BREMEN

15/08/2006	On the way from Greenland to Pond Inlet

16/08/2006	Departure from Pond Inlet

21/08/2006	The BREMEN reaches Gjöa Haven via James Ross Strait

23/08/2006	The BREMEN has left Gjöa Haven via Simpson Strait

28/08/2006	Six more days to Nome

28/08/2006	Destination — Point Barrow

31/08/2006	"Vessel in sight"

forward

TRAVELFINDER

ACTUAL POSITION

Current positions of our ships