Northern Finland in winter, home of the Northern Lights

Seeing the northern lights sometime is a dream of many people. Chances of doing this are especially good in northern Finland in winter. When you return from a trip to these latitudes, you will probably be asked more than once: “Have you seen her?”.

The one who knows how to spot it well is Thomas Cast. For years, this 45-year-old German based in Finland has been hunting this array of lights in the sky with a lens and tripod. Sometimes he also does this in the company of tourists.

But tonight, things remain theoretical. Because in the winter, the isolation that prevails outside the hotel, located about 140 kilometers from Oulu, snows heavily, and therefore, the chances of seeing the northern lights are non-existent, according to Kast.

“The aurora borealis occurs when the sun ejects charged particles into space, which are rejected by the Earth’s magnetosphere and ejected towards the poles,” he says. Once these particles enter Earth’s upper atmosphere, they cause the air particles to glow. “This creates the most beautiful light show in the world,” he says.

The legend of arctic foxes flicker

Kast says that the polar lights have not been fully studied. Instead, the Finns have a much simpler justification for the appearance of the northern lights: it’s a polar fox that sweeps away snow with its tail, generating sparks that reach the sky. In the country, this fiery skunk is called the Rifontolite. But it can’t be programmed either.

No problem, Finnish winters also offer other options. In many places, you can travel through the snow on a dog sled remembers. Snowshoeing, ice climbing, ice swimming or snowmobiling are also available.

Another typical detour is snowmobiles, which many Finns serve as a means of off-road winter transportation. From the hotel in Iso-Syöte, we drive to a camp for a family of reindeer herders. So that the participants of the tour do not freeze from the motorcycle, they are provided with thermal clothes and warm winter boots in advance at the hotel.

Upon arrival, a reindeer herder, Issa Okonmanaho, gives an introductory talk in front of a fireplace in a log cabin. In Lapland, reindeer are ubiquitous. In the woods, in the meadows. “There are more deer in Lapland than there are humans,” Issa says.

There are an estimated 200,000 animals and 185,000 people. Mammals move without fences or fences across secluded landscapes. However, they do have an owner who can be recognized by the markings on their ears.

From December to January there are only four hours of daylight

“The group meets twice a year,” explains Issa. In the summer, to select the calves while they are still with their mothers, and in the fall, to select the animals to be slaughtered.

The search for the Northern Lights continues in the Arctic Circle, near Rovaniemi, the capital of Lapland. Between December and January, there are barely four hours of light per day. This means that the place is dark enough to see the Northern Lights. But the sky is covered.

Fortunately, snowboarding is another possibility regardless of the bad weather. No need to be afraid of the jumping animals barking impatiently in the hope of moving before the match.

Skateboarding takes a while to get used to

One person is sitting on the sled and the other is standing behind him. Only the passenger left standing, called the “engine”, can apply the brakes hard.

A small turn and a wrong turn later, things start to have fun. However, dogs have a lot of gas and wind that makes flatulence reach the sled. Fortunately, there is enough fresh air.

Last night presents a starry sky. It’s 30 degrees below zero. Absolute silence while walking along the forest. With such temperatures, no animal expends energy on unnecessary movements or useless flights. Little by little, a cold seeped into the marrow. Time to go back to the hotel room?

But then it happens: the night sky presents a sparkling happy ending. The northern author appears on the horizon and slowly spreads across the sky from gray to green. In a way, it is indescribable. The big question waiting in the house can finally be answered: “Yes, I saw her!”.

Information:

Northern Finland: There are Finnair flights to Oulu or Rovaniemi.

Entry: People with a full vaccination schedule as well as those who have recovered from COVID-19 can enter Finland. You must also submit a negative test that is no more than 48 hours old. Both antigen and PCR tests are accepted.

Accommodation: Iso-Syöte has several hotels, although the offer in Rovaniemi is greater. In Rovaniemi there are also various nature hotels that allow you to spend the night in open-air log cabins with glass, ice cabins or nest-like cabins among the trees in the forest.

Information: Visit Finland (Address: PO Box 625, Porkkalankatu 1, 00180 Helsinki, Phone: +358 29 46951, Web: www.visitfinland.com)

dpa