Svalbard
Svalbard. The doorstep to the universe. No mans land. The top of the world. The edge of the world.
It has many names. But it’s an arctic desert island in the North Pole. It’s as far north as humans can go. With a “settlement” of about 1500 peopIe. With more polar bears than people. Can’t go anywhere without a shotgun. It’s another planet basically and I loved it.
I went on a 3 day dog sled deep into the arctic wilderness. The dogs protect you from the Polar Bears. Like this super buddy boy Carl. He guarded our cabin door all night to keep the bears out. We just met and he was willing to die for me. Now that’s a good boy.
I tend to find the edge of everything. On this day I went over the edge to where the Polar Bears love to hang out and murder seals. A 10 hour snowmobile trek to the exact location this crazy BBC dude locked himself in a cage.
I was convinced I could make friends with a Polar Bear if they weren’t too hungry. I really wanted to meet one and become bros, which is really stupid.
I’ll never forget the sound of silence. The Northern lights. The wind. The pastel-colored sky during twilight 🤤 I came back with stories that still blow my mind. It’s a special place with special people and I want to go back someday.