The other day we arrived at 90°N, to great fanfare. It was minus 4°C feels like minus 15, but no one cared. We have been blessed by the weather. The previous cruise to the Geographic North Pole was fogbound for many days but we have had brilliant sunshine. So lucky. Some bitter wind but not every day, thankfully.

The Geographic North Pole. Definitely bucket list for me, and as some of you know, this was very last minute, I only booked this trip in July. Just in case. 

The bridge made regular announcements throughout the morning to build our excitement, as we progressed through 89°N and all the seconds. 

We were then invited to the heli-deck to share in the countdown. The helicopter is stored below decks and it comes up via hydraulic lift before the rotors are attached. It’s magnificent to see. But the chopper was already on deck as it’s been out scouting for the past few few days, so the clever hotel staff rode up on the lift platform with a huge spread of champagne and caviar, accompanied by bagpipes courtesy of the Chief Engineer Marc. It was majestic. There was smoke and mirrors and the atmosphere was electric. The French really know how to throw a party, which I discovered back in 2018 on my first Ponant cruise, when we celebrated Bastille Day and then France’s win in the soccer world cup. I knew then that they had hooked me. 

We all cried and revelled, and a dance party followed. It wasn’t even lunchtime but it was an amazing celebration. 

That afternoon we stepped off the ship onto the sea ice, and did a range of fun activities. The scientists did science things, including cutting a core sample of the ice, pictured. I even went for a guided meditation on the ice! As you’d know, being quiet and still is not really my thing, but hey, when at the North Pole, why not? It was a fabulous, emotionally charged day, and we all loved it.

A lone gunner on polar bear patrol

After the guided meditation, which was somewhat farcical. The guide told us to look out at the landscape and focus on the beauty and in my view was a passenger mimicking a seal on the ice while his wife filmed him. It was hilarious and not at all conducive to a successful meditation.