Blue ice

A trip to Nigårdsbreen- much reduced in size since I was last here 13 years ago but still impossibly beautiful.

This is a meltwater channel that has melted out almost to the surface and which still has a stream running through it. We climbed down and got some brilliant family pics but I have a policy of not posting kids on social media so the ice itself will have to do.


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Another perfect blue sky day, sunny but windy (katabatics) all day- ideal glacier weather.
We took a rather expensive trip but worth it, meeting up at the glacier museum and then kayaking down the lake.

The glacier front has retreated so much and the whole terminus has thinned dramatically that it is now a rather long walk to the glacier itself, though over absolutely stunningly beautiful scoured granite. Really spectacular stuff.

A long kit gaff and we were divided up from a big group of 24 (actually a few too many) to a smaller group of 8 with guide Daria.
We spent a good two hours on the glacier with extra entertainment provided by 2 of our fellow tourists who got engaged on the ice! Champagne and hot chocolate all round...

Lots of gorgeous ice features, moulins, streams, old fractures and new ones opening, foliation and a healthy microbe population judging by the dark surface..

But the size of the meltwater rivers pouring off was not reassuring, this glacier is going to keep retreating fast based on this evidence...

A was clearly exhausted from yesterday's activities and needed leading by the hand by the guide on the way down, S did brilliantly though and both were in a super mood on the way back (which involved kayaking down the lake, luckily with a tail wind that really had us flying over the glorious turquoise water).
Then quiet time while we rehydrated (I stupidly let our water bottles in the car) on soup, tea and sodavand and a gigantic vegetarian curry for dinner . Judging by the clean plates everyone was starving...

Tomorrow S&A are claiming the right to choose activities so I wonder what they'll choose...