Blogging from A to Z 2026 - V is for Vikingen

As I travel the world I take many photos that pique my interest. During the year April 2025 to March 2026 our travels included visits to many islands large and small. My theme for 2026 Island Hopping will give precedence to Islands visited in the past year but for those difficult letters like X and Z I will dig into my photo archives for content.

On July 12th 2025 we enjoyed a scenic sail to the Svartisen Glaciers.

The first site on our itinerary was Vikingen Island in the Nordland County of Norway which sits on the line of the Arctic Circle. After passing the Island with its Arctic Circle marker at 66°33' we were sailing in the Land of the Midnight Sun. This was a cause of excitement for many of our fellow sailors who hadn't before been this far north.

Eventually we spotted Vikingen Island the first site on our tour

 

Vikingen Island with the Arctic Circle Marker

A closeup of the Artic Circle marker

Let's not forget the little lighthouse on Vikiingen

We kept on sailing until we reached Svaritsen Glacier which is on the Norwegian mainland. I'll add a few photos below.

First Sighting

It was great that the crew could enjoy the visit

From the ship we could only see one of the glaciers that makes up Svaritsen 

While it was a magnificent day and a very pleasant sail I was rather underwhelmed by Svaritsen. It did not compare favourably with some of the other glaciers we have visited. Perhaps it was the perspective from which we visited!

V islands we have visited include Vancouver Island, Vanua Levu, Vanuatu, Venice, Vigur, Virgin Islands, Viti Levu, 

Bonus Posts Shoulder to Shoulder