2028-5 | ISBJORN | Spitsbergen Adventure Cruise 1
Price for this passage is pending but will be available shortly, stay tuned!
There are lifetime memories - And then there are generational memories. Long after we've crossed our last bar, our descendants will still talk about the things we did on this expedition. Svalbard is the perfect wilderness, full of icebergs, glaciers, whales, walrus and polar bears. And it won’t last forever. The Arctic is changing fast, and will soon be gone forever. Svalbard is also a goldmine for history buffs. The cold and dry climate have preserved the past incredibly well, and we might find relics and remains from its rich whaling and exploration history. The archipelago is immense, and we have a thousand great options for where to go and what to see. The route shown on the chart is but one of those options, going for the mythical 80 degrees North! The weather and ice will have the final say, but there are no wrong answers. The isolation and constant midnight sunlight might make us forget time completely and truly live in the moment. It might be two o’clock in the morning, and we might be oblivious to that fact - hiking to the top of a hill in our shirtsleeves wearing sunscreen and sunglasses. The weather can be all over the place. We might indeed get warm days, but we can also get freezing temperatures and snow. So pack warm clothes! This trip will be sailed with two 59 North staff members, and only 4 paying crew. ISBJØRN sailed an Adventure trip on Svalbard with DELOS in 2018! Check out their youtube series about it here! [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lasyFyLD7e0]
SAILING STAFF
.jpeg)
The Passage
Rough itinerary
All 59º North passages are very much subject to weather. We pick our routes based on the "correct" time of year to be sailing in the different regions we visit, and we always build-in enough time to give us some margin for weather windows. The skipper has final say on departure dates and weather windows, but generally speaking, the intinerary for this passage will look like this:
June 19, 2028
Crew arrive to ISBJØRN at 1300 in Longyearbyen, Svalbard and Jan Mayen. ISBJØRN orientation followed by crew dinner. All crew stay onboard ISBJØRN.
Prep Days
Between the joining and departure dates, all pre-passage preparation, provisioning, and safety briefings will be completed. The specific pre-departure schedule will be outlined and posted onboard ISBJØRN by the skipper.
June 21, 2028
Scheduled departure, weather dependent.
July 3, 2028
Latest date (12:00 noon) for crew to depart ISBJØRN from Longyearbyen, Svalbard and Jan Mayen.
TRAVEL LOGISTICS
Longyearbyen
Weather conditions
In-depth analysis, by WRI
WHY 59º NORTH?
ambitious sailing schedule
The best boats
WOMEN BUNKS GUARANTEED
Professional, well-paid staff
knowledge & community
Why it costs what it costs...
"This trip across the North Sea from Bergen (Norway) to Oban (Scotland) was awesome! It offered hands-on learning about navigation, lots of sail handling, and a wide range of weather, wind (up to 35 knots!), and sailing conditions. Jon Amtrup is a highly experienced skipper—and he helped me fill in the gaps!"
"I highly recommend the experience of doing a passage on ISBJØRN. I gained valuable offshore experience on a fine boat, learned how Andy and Mia competently manage their boat, learned about celestial navigation, and had a great time doing it. Completing ISBJØRN's first back-to-back 200 mile day passage was a smokin' fast bonus!"
"If you are thinking about reefing—reef! The same logic applies to sailing with Andy and Mia: if you are thinking about sailing with them, stop thinking and GO! Andy and Mia are great sailors, leaders, teachers, cooks, and warm, intelligent, accepting people. No matter how many blue water miles you have under your keel, you will be a better sailor after your trip on ISBJØRN."
"I'm still processing everything I saw, felt, learned, and experienced over those 17 days, but there are a few things I wanted to express before the land sickness wears off and I return to my landlubber life. Your Skippers and Mates created an environment of calm, comfort, and confidence that washed away any apprehension I had about joining seven strangers on a 1600-mile round trip. I am blown away by their depth of knowledge, not only of sailing but also in teaching a crew of widely different experience levels without a hint of condescension. I would not hesitate to sail with them again, and we're already scoping out future dates on the cal."
"The trip delivered on all my expectations and more. I wanted to experience sailing beyond my current boundaries, apply my skills, and learn from those around me. I felt able to embrace the whole experience because we had an excellent 59º North team that shaped us into a great crew on a well-prepared boat. If you are seeking ocean wisdom, you could not be in better hands."
"In 11 days on the North Sea with a crew of 9 women, 59 feet of boat, 1350nm, and two episodes of heaving-to, we gained experience that would take years to acquire alone. The mentorship, leadership, training, and kindness from the crew at 59º North helped us become better sailors by leaps and bounds. Sharing this journey with sailors from around the world was pure joy, and every passage with 59º North is a legacy of knowledge we benefit from."
"59º North made my dream come true to cross an ocean via sailboat. Andy and Vilma taught me little lessons and big lessons of the sea, pushing me out of my comfort zone, which is exactly what I was hoping for. Thank you Andy and Mia for letting me, a rookie ocean sailor, live the experience of a lifetime and fueling future dreams. I hope to be crew on FALKEN once again and to keep learning."
THE BOAT
S&S Swan 48
'
ISBJØRN
'
🇳🇴
ISBJØRN is the "OG" 59º North boat, the classic S&S Swan 48 that we started the business with back in 2015. She's considered an all-time great ocean cruising boat - built like a tank in Finland to the highest standards and with a modern but conservative hull shape making for fast & comfortable passages offshore in any weather. ISBJØRN sails with 5 crew plus a Skipper, and each person has their own dedicated sea berth & storage locker.