Svalbard · Norway · Ice
Kongsfjorden
Two glaciers head this 26 km fjord off Ny-Ålesund
Photo: Smiley.toerist · CC BY-SA 3.0
Kongsfjorden is an inlet on the west coast of Spitsbergen headed by the Kronebreen and Kongsvegen glaciers, with the settlement of Ny-Ålesund on its southern shore, one of the few permanent settlements on the island. The country around it sits amid the richest fauna and flora areas of Svalbard, especially in the innermost parts of the fjord, though no route or entry point is published for a dive site in it.
Where it is and how deep
79.0000° N, 11.6667° EApproximate position — the dashed circle shows where the site lies; your operator's briefing has the mooring.
The dive
A ship works its way in from the west coast of Spitsbergen and there is a lot of fjord to choose from: 26 kilometres of it, between 6 and 14 kilometres wide. Nothing is arranged ashore — the vessel carries the divers and the tenders go out from it — and where they go is settled on board from the ice and the weather rather than from a list of sites.
Two glaciers, Kronebreen and Kongsvegen, head the fjord, and the inner end is where the life is: the country around Ny-Ålesund is described as sitting amid the richest fauna and flora areas of Svalbard, especially along the rim of Kongsfjorden and particularly in its innermost parts. What that means underwater is not published — no source found gives a route or a species list for a dive site in this fjord, and the ships that dive here work to around 20 metres at most — so a glacier front is worked well clear of any active calving face, and the day is the ship's to set.
Marine life and season
The sources we used don't single out particular species here.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Off-season | Off-season | Off-season | Off-season | Fair | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Off-season | Off-season | Off-season |
Season follows Svalbard: Expedition ships operate Jun–Sep in the polar summer; outside that window the archipelago is dark, iced in and inaccessible.
Know before you go
- A glacier front is dived well clear of any active calving face, among grounded and drifting blocks rather than under one; the ship sets the standoff, not the group.
- Outside the settlements a rifle must be carried for polar bear protection, so tender landings and shore work run with the ship's armed guide.
Photos from Kongsfjorden
Bjoertvedt · CC BY-SA 3.0
Bjoertvedt · CC BY-SA 3.0
Questions divers ask
Can you dive Kongsfjorden without a ship?+
No dive base or shore operation is published for the fjord. Ny-Ålesund on the southern shore is a settlement rather than a dive centre, and what diving happens in Kongsfjorden is run from expedition ships and their tenders.
How big is Kongsfjorden?+
The inlet is 26 km long and ranges in width from 6 to 14 km, on the west coast of Spitsbergen, with the Kronebreen and Kongsvegen glaciers at its head and Ny-Ålesund on the southern shore.
Sources
- Kongsfjorden — Wikipedia
- Polar diving — Oceanwide Expeditions
- Diving in Spitsbergen — Oceanwide Expeditions
- Ny-Ålesund — Wikipedia
- Svalbard — Wikivoyage
Photo credits
- A gaff-rigged schooner departs Blomstrand bay in Kongsfjorden under sail, mountains rising behind it. by Smiley.toerist, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Conwaybreen glacier descends to the shore of Kongsfjorden, a small cabin visible in the foreground. by Bjoertvedt, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Bare mountain slopes rise above the shoreline of Blomstrandhamna in northern Kongsfjorden. by Bjoertvedt, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
In The Logbook
- Ice diving: how it works and where to goCold water · 12 min read
- Cold-water diving: is it worth the drysuit?Cold water · 8 min read
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