Smeerenburg

Smeerenburg, blubber town, was a Dutch whaling station established on Amsterdamøya in the 1610s where whales were flensed and their blubber boiled down in great copper vats, and for a couple of decades it was one of the busiest places in the Arctic before the whales near shore were killed out and the operation moved offshore. What survives is the fused remains of the blubber ovens, foundations and graves.

What you actually see

• The blubber ovens - the fused brick and oil residue of the boiling works.
• The foundations - the outlines of the station buildings on the gravel.
• The graves - the burials of whalers on the island.
• The walrus - the animals that now haul out on the same beach.

When to go

June to September is the open-water season. Sea ice can close the northwest into July. Landings depend on swell and on the walrus present.

Honest expectations

Everything on the site is protected and nothing may be touched or moved; the ovens are fragile. Walrus on the beach frequently prevent landing. Access is by expedition ship only.

Nearby

Northwest Spitsbergen National Park surrounds it, and Virgohamna is nearby.