Day 1: Arriving in the Arctic Circle

Location: Bodø, Nordland County, Norway

After a long day of travelling from Heathrow to Oslo and then onto Bodø, I stepped off the plane and breathed in the fresh Arctic air. I was glad to have finally arrived, all the sitting and waiting at airports had made me increasingly irritable and I was ready to begin exploring. Bodø lies North of the Arctic Circle and experiences the Midnight sun or polar day, a natural phenomenon that occurs in the summer months of places in the far North. During the summer these regions are tilted towards the Sun, extending the hours of daylight, giving the day no clear beginning or end. Although this will most likely disrupt my sleeping patterns, I am happy to have the extended days to maximise the experiences I have and fully discover this region.

I stayed in Bodø overnight before taking the ferry journey to the Lofoten islands, where I will be spending the next week. The sharp granite peaks of the Lofoten islands rise like a barricade out of the vast Norwegian Sea, 95 miles north of the Arctic Circle line and 800 miles from Oslo. The islands are home to soaring ridgelines, rocky outcrops covered in boisterous colonies of sea birds, sheltered bays and deep glacier cut fjords. Lofoten is encompassed with long silver sanded beaches and fishing villages scattered colourful fisherman’s huts known as Rorbu. Over the next week, I'll be travelling between the islands in search of panoramic views from the summits, exploring Arctic fishing villages and discovering Europe's most northerly wilderness outpost.

I'm always excited to return to the Arctic circle and have more adventures in this part of the world. The Arctic circle is often associated with hostility, a landscape of ice and frozen oceans where the Northern lights offer a dazzling display for those willing to venture to the far North. But the Arctic is far more than this. It’s the home of a diverse mix of people, hosts a range of animals and is the stage for their large-scale migrations by sea, land and air. It’s the setting of epic exploratory voyages; expeditions to the North Pole and journeys through the treacherous Northwest Passage. Although the summer is short-lived at such Northern latitudes, visiting in this season offers a different perspective of this region and shatters the illusion of simply a stark landscape of ice. The far North has always captivated me and my previous trips to these latitudes have never disappointed. From the unique geology of Iceland to the wild, mountainous lands of the Yukon. The grizzly bears and migrating caribou of Northern Alaska to the Polar night of Finland, illuminated by a heavy blanket of snow and the Northern lights. Collectively these experiences will always pull me back to the magic of the far North.

I took some time to explore Bodø after my flight, but as it was a rainy Sunday evening so there was not much happening and everything was closed. I'll be back here before travelling home, so will hopefully be able to see a little more of the town. I went to a restaurant for dinner and it was gone 10pm by the time I walked back to my hotel, but it was still fully light which makes it so easy to lose track of time. I went to bed and initially struggled to sleep due to a mix of excitement and the midnight sun keeping me awake. I eventually drifted in and out of sleep and got some rest to prepare me for the coming days of adventure.