Overnight the fog lifted, the ice fields dispersed and we arrived in Graedefjord at 6.00am in a peerless blue sky and bright sunshine. There were to be two expedition activities today, a wet landing ashore in the morning and a Zodiac cruise at the head of the fjord this afternoon.
The wet landing ashore proved to be a challenge for all including the Expedition Team. No Silversea ship nor any of the Expedition Team had visited this fjord before so scouting for a shore base and preparing the walks were all undertaken in the true sense of pioneering.
The site chosen for landing was close to where a glacial melt river – see the photo of the waterfall - carrying its' Glacial Flour' – the fine silt ground from the rocks as the Glacier moves forward - entered the fjord with some force. The landing beach to the left of the waterfall consisted of this fine silt/sand and as the tide was ebbing so large sandbanks were revealed which made beaching the Zodiacs in shallow water very difficult.
My Zodiac was about the 6th to attempt a landing. The shore team had in the end to wade out to us and pull the Zodiac to within 3 metres of the beach. I was the first off and with the help of a sailor's grip stepped off into water that came just to the top of my boots - knee high - and if that wasn't hard enough the sand was gloopy and sticky under my feet. After getting stuck a couple of times and tottering dangerously at every attempted step, two of the shore team came to my rescue – and everyone after me – and I made it to the shore!
This was the trickiest wet landing I have ever experienced, and the situation continued to deteriorate as the tide ebbed.
The team had set out a route over the hill behind the beach to view the waterfall from above but with a slightly damp right foot I decided to stay on the beach where I discovered a Reindeer Antler propped against a rock. Other antlers were found as well, and some guests spotted a couple of live Reindeer high up on the slopes of the mountains above the beach.
Loading the Zodiacs for the return trip to the ship was equally hazardous, the line of Red Silversea Parkas snaking back and forth along the sand bar as the Expedition Team searched for deeper water and safe sites to board the Zodiacs. Everyone made it back safely with stories to tell.
An adventurous morning but the scenery was spectacular.
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