Through Frozen Lands

Delighted to peer through the frosty window out to cold clear blue skies! A perfect, nostril freezing blue bird arctic morning. The fire had kept the hut really warm and it must be really well insulated as it was -15°C outside. It certainly made getting out of my sleeping back much easier than some Arctic nights I’ve had!

It was pancakes for breakfast and then out in the trail. A magical morning thanks to the fresh snow and crystal low sunlight pushing through the trees. Unlike the low visibility blizzard conditions of yesterday, this time we had far-reaching views and sparkling snowfields for as far as the eye could see. 

The fresh snow was really deep and we had some fun diving into it while the dogs were resting. The sun never got too high in the sky and created magical lighting as sledded along the trail. As we couldn’t make it to the next camp, we made a big circular journey and finished the day back at the cabin, where we all knew what chores to get to and thankfully, having well-stocked the fire in the morning, the cabin had retained its heat. Before dinner, I had a sauna in a little cabin next to ours! It was wood-fired and afterwards, had to rinse off outside by pouring a bucket of warm water over my head, while stood in the snow!

After planning the route for the following day, I went outside and saw that the Northern Lights we’re beginning to show. Everyone grabbed their jackets and we raced in the dark down to the river to get the best clear sky view. It started with a faint green arc across the sky, then to our amazement, the colours became more vivid and the aurora did its magical green dance across the sky. We couldn’t believe our luck! Every time it started to fade, we started to walk back to the cabin, only to turn back as it became brighter again. Incredible. We watched for nearly two hours, until we were too cold and it eventually faded away. Some of the students are studying photography, so took some long exposure photos which really captured the colours. (My camera phone captured nothing!). We felt like the luckiest people, to be watching it in such a remote place, by ourselves. Photos below..