Jan Mayen Favorite Tips by tini58de

History

Favorite thing: The early history of Jan Mayen is a little obscure - maybe an Irish monk who was a good sailor has been near the island as early as in the 6th century A.D. and Vikings are also believed to have known this island.

The island was named after a Dutchman who in 1614 visited the island: Jan Jacobs May van Schellinkhout.

Jan Mayen was a whaling center for both Dutch and English whalers.

For more information on the history, please do have a look at the "History" section of http://www.jan-mayen.no - it is really well written and very interesting!

Black and White

Favorite thing: When thinking of Jan Mayen "black and white" popps to my mind:

the black is for the lava sands, since Jan Mayen is a volcanic island and the predominant color is black.

White is the snow and the glaciers that you can see even in summer -

and when we visited in June we had an impressive combination of both!

Whaling

Favorite thing: Jan Mayen has been a center of whaling -

but that stopped in 1650!!! There is still evidence on Jan Mayen - the Hollenderhaugen at Kvalrossbukta - and it was here where I found those remains of what I believe are whale bones.

I am a strict opponent of whale hunting - I much rather like to do whale watching!

General Information

Favorite thing: There is a wonderful website about Jan Mayen with the most useful information on flora, fauna, history, meteorology, contact addresses and beautiful pictures.

Have a look here:

http://www.jan-mayen.no/

Flora

Favorite thing: It is truly amazing: this island seems to be so rough, but once you look closely you will find so many flowers and plants and mosses all around.

Once again I want you to have a look at the "Flora" section of the Jan Mayen website - there you will find a list of all registered plants on the island!