A week in Northern Spitsbergen in search of pack ice and polar bears. by Ian Collier
A few years ago, I wrote a short piece about how much I enjoyed my 2 day ‘digital detox’ aboard the Rocky Mountaineer train in the wilds of British Colombia. Disconnected from phone and internet does provide an increasingly rare opportunity to focus entirely on your surroundings and so a… Learn more
Antarctica on board Greg Mortimer! by Janine Hay
Arriving in Ushuaia with the anticipation of boarding The Greg Mortimer Ship the following day, I was buzzing with excitement. With a morning to spare before meeting my fellow passengers, I decided to explore on foot. It became obvious very quickly around the shore who my fellow passengers were. Everyone… Learn more
A Circumnavigation of Iceland in Springtime by Ian Collier
Keflavik Airport in Iceland has come a long way since I first passed through it twenty years ago. It’s certainly a lot bigger and grander than I had remembered, which is perhaps explained by the recent incredible increase in popularity of this tiny island nation for overseas visitors. Iceland is… Learn more
Back to the ‘ice’ in Shackleton’s footsteps by Ian Collier
For me, it’s the deep blue colour of the ice that draws me back, and the overwhelming sense of humility that you feel when confronted with the enormity of the continent. It’s a cliché, but it really is ‘the trip of a lifetime’ and once you’ve been, you’ll come back… Learn more
Polar Bears in Spitsbergen by Peter Dunne
I joined Peregrine Adventures on a 10 night journey from Longyerbyen return aboard the Akademik Sergei Vavilov with 64 other passengers. We explored incredible terrain and I have to say this is a fantastic way to see some incredible wildlife in their natural habitat. We have just had 2 of… Learn more
Cruising the Canadian Arctic and Greenland by Ian Collier
In 2005, I was fortunate to join an expedition cruise aboard the Akademik Ioffe from Churchill in Manitoba for 12 days, through Hudson Bay and across the Davis Strait to the fabled ‘iceberg’ alley of Illulisat in Western Greenland. It remains one of my most treasured travelling experiences, starting even… Learn more
Discovering Antarctica by Ian Collier
In 1998, I was fortunate to visit Antarctica for myself. It was my seventh (and final) continent, but that was soon forgotten as I quickly fell under the spell of the ‘Ice’, and the experience left me changed forever! Over the last ten years I’ve been back several times, and… Learn more