![]() ![]() The archipelago is 85% glaciers which makes for some spectacular scenery unlike even other polar regions. This far north even the satellite internet doesn’t work, so you will have to go without the wi-fi and really explore this destination. This means that the cruises that visit now may still land at completely new landing sites that have no record of being explored in the past. Even with the increased interest in the polar regions (40,000+ visitors to Antarctica each year), Franz Josef Land has remained largely unexplored with roughly only 1000 visitors every year. Not to worry though – during the summer period when the expeditions run, the temperature averages a balmy couple of degrees above 0C. At times the temperature reaches lower than -40C and in winter total darkness engulfs the island for several months. UndiscoveredĮven in the middle of summer sea ice can make exploring parts of Franz Josef land impossible, and in winter the archipelago is totally surrounded by ice, making it one of the least hospitable areas on earth – so its not surprising that it has never been permanently settled. To reach Franz Josef Land requires you to fly to Longyearbyen – the most northern airport in the world that operates scheduled flights (quite the journey when travelling from Australia) and then sail for around two days before passing through a Russian checkpoint, after which you are finally ready to explore! Remote Wilderness 2. A part of what makes Franz Josef Land special is indeed how hard it is to get to. In the era of low-cost airlines, Instagram and package holidays it’s increasingly difficult to get away from the crowds and explore somewhere new. These are my top reasons you should add Franz Josef Land to your travel bucket list. If you haven’t heard of it before, it is a Russian archipelago in the Arctic Ocean which is inhabited only by military personnel and spectacular wildlife. The islands have been a nature sanctuary since 1994 and became part of the Russian Arctic National Park in 2012.I recently had the opportunity to visit Franz Josef Land on board the Sea Spirit. With the Cold War, the islands became off limits for foreigners and two military airfields were built. The Kingdom of Norway rejected the claim and several private expeditions were sent to the islands. In 1926, the Soviet Union annexed the islands, which were known at the time as Fridtjof Nansen Land, and settled small outposts for research and military purposes. The first reported finding was in the 1873 Austro-Hungarian North Pole expedition led by Julius von Payer and Karl Weyprecht, who named the area after Emperor Franz Joseph I. The archipelago was first spotted by the Norwegian sailors Nils Fredrik Rønnbeck and Johan Petter Aidijärvi in 1865, although they did not report their finding. The highest elevations are found in the eastern group, with the highest point located on Wiener Neustadt Land, 670 meters (2,200 ft) above mean sea level. Cape Fligely on Rudolf Island is the northernmost point of the Eastern Hemisphere. Compared to other Arctic archipelagos, Franz Josef Land has a high dissection rate of 3.6 square kilometers per coastline kilometer. The islands have a combined coastline of 4,425 kilometers (2,750 mi). Approximately 85% of the archipelago is glaciated, with large unglaciated areas on the largest islands and many of the smallest ones. ![]()
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