Norway's JAN MAYEN ISLAND - Heading Back Southwest toward Iceland now, about Halfway in Fact, -We Come to Norway's Small, Isolated, Mid-Sea, Jan Mayen Island.

It is one of the Many Isolated World Islands, to be Covered in some Depth Later. But we're Covering Jan Mayen here, in that it is such an Earth's Wildest Place,-COLD.

It too is Lonely, Isolated, Small, Bleak, Bare, Barren, Cold, Foggy, Ruff, Rocky, Sea Bashed, Horrendously Weathered, and All the Rest! As we've by now Become somewhat Well Familiar with!, in Such High Arctic or Antarctic Latitudes.

But with One Major Twist and Difference! -It is Volcanic! And Often Actively so! This Isn't Totally New! We've met it in Iceland, Alaska and the Aleutians, and Kamchatka and the Kuriles, for example. But Spitzbergen and a Good Number of Other Places we've "Been To" Lately, are Not Volcanic. So Jan Mayen with it's Active Volcano "Beerenberg", are something of a Standout! When you Think of Norway, You Don't Think of Volcanos! But in so far as Jan Mayen, like Spitsbergen is a Part of Norway, and Not a Possession, Colony, or something, then Here Norway actually has a Volcano! It is the Only Such Volcano, anywhere in Norway. Beerenberg is some 7,000 to 7,500 Feet High!

Beerenberg has Many Glaciers, Five of them Reaching the Sea. This will Present both it's Problems and Oppurtunities, in a Survival Sense. For Instance, It would be a Ready Fresh Water Source! There are No Lakes, apart from Two Seawater Lagoons. And the Only Streams are Meltwater Ones from the Glaciers. Again, a Great and Ready Freshwater Source!

Jan Mayen and it's Volcano are maybe some 600 Miles West of Norway Itself. So it's Not like it's Way Off in some Other Part of the World! Jan is actually Closer to Greenland and Iceland, than it is to Norway. 2/3 of the Way over towards Greenland, in Fact. And it's Still Several Hundreds of Miles North of the Arctic Circle! At 71 Degrees North.

It is in Fact a Part of the Same Mid-Atlantic Geologic and Tectonic Formation, as Iceland is. Right to the Same Northeast / Southwest Orientation, of Iceland's Central, Formative, Fault.

Besides the Beerenberg Volcano with it's Lava Flows, the Place has Not Much More, than a Tiny Airstrip and a Weather Shack!

Some Excellent Reference Sources for Jan Mayen and Beerenberg, (As Well as for Most Other Isolated World Islands, if in a Different Guide in a Given Source / Series.), Are Lonely Planet's "Norway" Guide, Bradt's "Guide to Spitsbergen", and Older National Geographic Maps Going Back to the 50s or 60s!

(Lonely Planet's "Antarctica" Guide, Very Well and Comprehensively Covers the Majority!, of Most Other Isolated World Islands! You Like Can't Get This Anywhere Else! But a Small Weakness with Lonely Planet. It's as if Back in School, -your Geography or Social Studies Book Covered 40 of our States so Comprehensively Well!, but Not All 50! Lonely Planet even mentions some Mysterious, Mythical, Legendary Ones once Thot to Exist by some, but that have since been Canned! Such as Trulsklippen! there's Additionally Something I just Like and Love about that Name "Trulsklippen"!, and Had to briefly Make Mention of it here so! Ones such as That are Great Sea Lore!, if Nothing Else! But Back to the Real Ones. Lonely Planet Completely and Comprehensively Covers Most!, if Not All of Them, -So Well! )

Jan Mayen and it's Beerenberg happens to be in their Excellent Norway Guide. Bradt Covers it Very Well too! And if you can Come Across the Appropriate and Excellent National Geographic Maps, -You can See Excellent, Detailed Maps, of All of These so Obscure, Isolated World Islands! Jan Mayen Included. Access and Avail Yourself, of these Excellent Reference Sources!, if you Can!

Now as to Survival On, and Rescue or Extrication From!, -Jan Mayen and it's Beerenberg Volcanic Lava Flows!

First, You're Dealing with Cold Survival, Sea and Coast Survival, Atrocious Seas and Weather, Bare Treelessness, Much 24 Hour Mid-Winter Darkness, and Other Such High Arctic Samesort, as we've Met Many Places Already! It's also Awash Amidst the Cold Greenlandic Ocean Current. That of course Makes For a Colder Land!

Jan Mayen is Pretty Bare of Plant Life, but it's Surprisingly Present in More Sheltered Areas, for an Arctic Land! it is a Little Further South, and thus a Little Warmer! Still it is Not Enuf to Support any kind of Animal Grazing.

You're on Quite a Small Island Too. It's Only some 30 Miles Long, by 8 or so Miles Wide! (My Quick Estimation from Kilometer Dimensions given in the Bradt Guide, which are 56 .3 Km by 15 .8 Km.) This Doesn't Give you a Lot of Maneauvering Room to Try to Survive In! Let Alone on a Place so Bare!

It has something of a Dumbell Shape, one End Larger, the Other Smaller.

The Best Landfalls, are in the Pinched Off Middle. Tides are only some 2 and 1/2 Feet in Range.

And then of course there's the Whole Vital Matter of Volcanic Awareness and Survival !, on Jan Mayen! Volcanos can be Something Else!, Like No Other!

Food,-Get that from the Beach and Sea! Aside from perhaps the Quite Occassional Plant, -You Can't Get that from Land! Unless you can Nab a Bird!, or perhaps even Bird's Eggs.

Water,-Again, you shud Have a Perfectly Adequate to Abundant Source!, from the Glaciers and Meltwater. The Volcanic Soil is Quite Porous, however, a Lot of Water Drains Right In! Try to Prevent a Lot of that, with Collecters, Spread Plastic, Etc.

Fuel or Firewood, -Maybe some of the Meager Plant Materials in a Poor Man's "Grassland Survival", at Best! Occassional Small Woody Plants Do Grow every Here and There!, though.

You Can also Make Use of some Volcanic Steam Pits and Other Volcanic Heat and Warmth Sources!, for Some of your Warmth, Cooking, and Other Needs.

Shelter,-Some Natural Rock Shelters Scattered About, Plus what Rocks and Volcanic Soil as you can Arrange for a Shelter, -May be Pretty Much your Only Option and Best Bet!
You might be Able to Scrap Up enuf of those relatively Rare Woody Plants too, for Shelter Uses!

Air Signaling is a Sim Hope with a Dim Chance! For Jan is Usually Socked In by Fog and Cloud Cover! However, at least an Occassional Sea Vessel Arrives or Passes By! At least an Occassional Aircraft Makes Use of Jan Mayen's Air Strip. Be Ready to Contact and Make Use of Them!

You'll have to Work yourself to What Settlement or Installation on Jan Mayen there is. Small Weather Station, Volcano Observatory, Etc. Being such a Small Island, This Shudn't be Too Long or Difficult! Except that the Volcanic Landscape, can Provide some Really Tuff and Dangerous Going! There are Cliffs, in a Number of Places on Jan Mayen, as well ! Once you Do Make some Human Contact, You shud be Pretty Allright, and Sooner or Later on your Way Out of there!

This is Cold, Mid-Atlantic, Volcanic Jan Mayen Island! And This is Survival On!, and Extrication From!, this Cold, Mid-Atlantic, Volcanic, Jan Mayen Island! [color:"black"] [/color] [email]ScottRezaLogan[/email]