Lofoten in February
Short days, long blue hours, red fishing cabins and the northern lights arriving just as I'd given up on them.
In February the sun barely clears the mountains in Lofoten, and that turns out to be the whole point. The light never quite becomes day; it moves from pink to gold to a long, deep blue, and the peaks rising straight from the sea glow through all of it.
Living in a rorbu
I stayed in a rorbu, one of the old red fishing cabins on stilts over the water. It had a wood stove, a tiny kitchen and a window over the harbour where the drying racks were full of cod. It smelled exactly as you'd imagine. I grew to like it.
Chasing the lights
- Check the cloud forecast, not just the aurora forecast. Clear skies matter most.
- Get away from the village lights, even a kilometre helps.
- Dress for standing still. You will stand still for a long time.
- Bring a flask. Hot blackcurrant juice is the local answer to everything.
On the fifth night, after three cloudy evenings and one false alarm, the sky turned green above the harbour. It moved like a curtain in a draught, faded, came back brighter and then was gone. I stood on the jetty for another hour in case it changed its mind.