Texas Bar and…

By Glen Bruels
This is part of a series called Nordic Sojourn 2022
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We continued our northward sail during the night to the area of Woodfjorden and Liefdefjorden to visit a trapping cabin known as Texas Bar.  In the morning, however, we were pretty heavily socked in with fog, causing a delay in going ashore.  Texas Bar was built in 1927 by two Norwegian trappers (Hilmar and Martin Pettersen Nois), but destroyed by a polar bear in 1932.  It was later repaired and it still stands today as a reminder of a trapper’s life in the hunting station of Mushamna.  And hunting was apparently good in this area with year-round populations of polar bears; bearded, ringed, and harp seals; arctic fox; and hundreds of Svalbard reindeer.  Apparently, this also used to be a big area for eider ducks, but increasing threats to their eggs from polar bears and a wide variety of birds, caused them to leave the area.

It was “touch and go” as to whether we would be able to land in Liefdefjorden. The fog was pretty thick!
But we ultimately made ashore when the fog lifted a bit.
Another silent sentinel keeping watch for us.
What everyone comes to see is the trapping cabin named Texas Bar. Nobody really knows why it was named this, especially given the Nois brothers had never set foot in Texas. They were known for some Texas-sized tall tales, however! The Svalbard government keeps the cabin in good repair.
Nobody seems to know much of anything about this cairn either…
But it was a beautiful place to hike around, with beautiful panoramic views.
I was really surprised how lush the plants were above the Arctic Circle
This sorrel looked good enough to go in a salad.
Not sure what this was, but it was beautiful.
We noticed these lines of vegetation interspersed with the gravel and wonder what caused it. It seems that where the gravel is, the permafrost is only around six inches or so below the surface. In the vegetation area, the permafrost has partially melted, lowering the ground and protecting the plants that grow there, as well as trapping water and nutrients that feed the plant. It’s amazing to think how a matter of inches can make the difference between life and death.
The geology is also very varied in the area and tells a story of both glacial action (both rapid and slow) and the degree to which land has been left largely untouched and layered and pressed down over time. The rock on the left is composite stone, in this case caused from rapid glacial action that left large, almost crystal-like pieces as part of it. On the right, is sedimentary stone where you can see the layers, enabling scientists to estimate the timeframes for each era.

This afternoon, we were supposed to take a Zodiac tour to see a massive glacier called Monacobreen which calves along a 5 kilometer glacier front in the Liefdefjorden.  Sadly, the fog returned with a vengeance and that expedition was cancelled.  Instead, we are heading north until we hit pack ice some time this evening.  This evening sort of dragged into late night.  By midnight, we saw some ice, but the floes were pretty few and far between.  So we packed it in. 

This entry was posted in Cruising, Norway, Svalbard, Travel
Glen Bruels

I am a traveler and sometimes clay sculptor, following a long career working in consulting. My work allowed me to travel the world extensively and I was hooked. Today, I travel with my wife/best friend to explore new places, meet new people, and learn new things.

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