Map A.02 - East Spitsbergen

Arctic region reaching from 82.34°N south to 72.51°N. A seagoing trade-route follows the coasts of Troms and Finnemar, shown in the bottom left; otherwise, these seas are visited yearly by whaling vessels who call the Barents sea the Devil's Dance Floor. During storms, this region is more often called the Devil's Jaw.

Hexes are 20 miles in diameter. Total area depicted equals 366,450 sq.m.

Features

Arctic Ocean

An almost completely landlocked body of water inaccessible from the Barents Sea. That part shown here has never been seen by civilisation; it is a vast waste of pack ice that remains in place the year round, though in summer months stretches of water, called leads, occur spontaneously in places and freeze again without warning.

Barents Sea

A portion of the Arctic Ocean, stretching eastward from the Greenland Sea. The sea is named after Willem Barents, who mapped the sea in the 16th century while searching for the Northeast Passage to China. The greatest length from east to west is 940 mi. Much of the sea is measurable, being less than 100 fathoms in depth. Eddies and currents are numerous and complex, requiring an expert navigator to safely venture here. Waters from the relatively warm North Atlantic Drift, a continuation of the Gulf Stream, enters from the Greenland Sea near Spitsbergen, raising the temperature of both water and air in that portion.

Although water temperatures vary from year to year, they are coolest in April and warmest in October. The portion nearest Europe never freezes, a fact which permits year-round access to the port of Westia in Ulthua. The ice cover advances from the northeast and attains its maximum coverage in April, covering four-fifths of the sea. During the summer, icebergs are common in the north and east. Haddock, cod and plaice are plentiful and caught in large numbers.

Bear Island was also discovered by Barents, the name originating when some of his men killed a polar bear there. In 1603, Stephen Bennet, an English explorer, named it Cherrie Island, a name which persists on many charts. Much of the island is a level rocky plain with scanty Arctic vegetation. The east coast has three pyramid-like peaks rising to elevations of over 1,500 ft. Somewhat lower hills rise directly from the sea along the south coast. The steep coasts are characterised by pillars of rock. The cliffs are inhabited by many waterfowl during the nesting season.

Greenland Sea

A part of the Atlantic Ocean, filled with polar ice through most of the year. In June and July the sea opens, allowing access along the Troms coast and into the Barents Sea, especially the waters south of Spitsbergen.

Spitsbergen

An unexplored archipelago in the extreme north of the world, comprising five major islands and many smaller ones. It measures approximately 250 mi. from east to west; its northern edge has never been observed. The topography is highly broken with the pointed mountain peaks — spits bergen — reaching to above 5,000 ft. Much of the surface of the larger islands is covered with tremendous glaciers which reach down to the ocean, where their ice calves into icebergs. The coasts are indented by deep fjords. Rivers rush in the summer, when the snow lying at elevations up to 1,600 ft. melts; however, these are small and of little importance. The greater part of the limited precipitation reaches the sea in the form of glacier ice. The vegetation is of the tundra range, principally mosses, with some flowering plants and a few dwarf trees. The climate is arctic, with brisk summer temperatures.

Discovered by the Norse in 1194 A.D. and rediscovered in 1596 by the Dutch navigator Willem Barents, the islands are visited yearly by whalers and sealers. Ordinary fauna include walruses, polar bears, reindeer and foxes. Various birds, including the eider duck, ptarmigan, gulls and the snowy owl frequent Spitsbergen. Details about Spitsbergen's residents are unknown.

Provinces

Finnemar

The Thann of Finnemar is a northwestern land in northern Ulthua, first settled by elves during the Age of Colyan-Ar 3500 years ago. The Thann's coastline is indented by large fjords; many of these are sheltered, with gullies and tree vegetation. The Tana basin is especially lush and green. There are no settlements other than villages; two of these, Hammerhearth and Kirenes, are market centers. The whole region, much of which is not shown, is 43 hexes in size.

Troms

The County of Troms is the northernmost land of the Kingdom of Denmark & Norway, settled by the Norse in the late 10th century. Troms has a very rugged and indented coastline facing the Norwegian Sea, though the large and mountainous islands along the coast shelter the important sea-route between Europe and the Barents Sea. Several large fjords stretch quite far inland. The county is obscure and lacks any market; goods are transshipped through the largest settlement and town, Tromso, 140 miles south to Narvik.