National Geographic Traveller (UK)
AURORA HIKING IN ABISKO
Lapland’s wilderness offers prime conditions for aurora hunting. Track the lights on snowshoes through lands considered sacred by the Sámi people
Pulling off a glove the size of an oven mitt, I turn off my headlamp and watch the snow turn blue in the moonlight. The scene softens. It’s silent but for the squeak of powder compacting underfoot. Any noise is absorbed by the snow, which sparkles as though strewn with diamonds. My guide Maja stops to check I’m OK and offers to slow the pace. It’s 9pm and I’m on a snowshoe trek through the woods in Abisko, a village in Swedish Lapland. Lying around 160 miles inside the Arctic Circle, it has no light pollution and is one of the best places in the world to see the Northern Lights, though tonight the clouds have moved in from the nearby Torneträsk lake. Maja sees me twisting around in my Michelin Man-like snowsuit, scouring the sky. She reassures me that the weather is ever-changing and there’s still hope of spotting aurora.
A novice when it comes to winter gear, I expect to be strapping on tennis racket-type shoes for this hike, but am handed what look like a pair of upturned skateboards with metal teeth instead of wheels. Wearing these, I’m instructed to “walk like a duck rather than lifting your feet”.
Departing in the evening from Abisko Guesthouse, the trek usually lasts two to three hours and is suitable even for those whose experience of climbing is little more than a staircase or two. Despite the -5C temperature, it’s a slightly sweaty trudge uphill, with flecks of ice stinging my cheeks. The cold invigorates and there’s a distinct aura of magic darting around these skinny trees.
Previous hikers have already hardened the ice track and I shuffle behind Maja as she heads towards Stor Nabben mountain, which looms in the shadows. Ducking between
twigs and stray branches, we curve around to approach the base when Maja shouts: “Ha! Aurora!” With three claps she veers left off the path, disappearing knee-deep into powder, and points up. I’d been scrutinising moonlit slivers of cloud, willing them to be the lights, but there’s now no doubting this twist of aurora. Like steam, the wisp lengthens then deepens to a Ghostbusters green. I follow Maja, who forges ahead pointing out animal tracks in the snow: elongated rabbit paws; cloven hooves of moose; and the frozen filigree made by tiny birds.
This region of northern Sweden is historically inhabited by the Indigenous Sámi people, reindeer herders for whom the land is sacred. Before we ascend Stor Nabben, Maja points to a distant mountain range, snow-stained and fearsome, but peaceful in the darkness. She indicates a semi-circle-shaped valley, which looks as though the Sámi gods took a clean bite out of the range.
“This is Lapporten,” she says. “Between those mountains are two small lakes and the story goes that there’s a portal to the other dimension.” Halfway to Lapporten is Paddus, the holy mountain of the Sámi people. In the past, Sámi men travelled there annually to pray to the gods. “Hiking there, you don’t feel alone, as if someone is watching,” says Maja. “Sometimes you see shadows running around, but it’s not a feeling of fear, just the presence of something.”
Reaching the summit is easy enough and we find a bench and a small letterbox where visitors can write their names on a notepad tucked inside a little bag. Maja produces a flask of hot, freshly made lingonberry juice. The sweet liquid feels furry against my throat as we sip the drink and look down on Abisko, where the lights from lodges glow like tiny orbs. Shivering, I trudge about to stay warm as new aurora emerge. Like a screensaver, its green body shapeshifts from thin threads to falling rain, performing for about 10 minutes until the clouds drift in and knit together a blanket so thick that even the moon vanishes. The show over, we throw one last glance at the skies and descend once more into the magic of Abisko’s woods.
HOW TO DO IT
A two to three-hour trek costs SEK590 (£48) per person, including all clothing and gear. abiskoguesthouse.com
A world apart from the Alps, the Nordic’s low-slung mountains offer a unique skiing experience with the chance to spot the Northern Lights, go dog sledding and take a snowmobile safari. We select five of the most magical resorts in the far north. Words: Nick Dalton
Levi, Finland
This Lapland resort is packed with places to eat, drink and sleep, not least the partypopular Crazy Reindeer Hotel. Levi is one of Finland’s largest ski resorts and still growing: Levi West is its newest collection of bars, restaurants and slope-side hotels. And there have been plenty more new openings over the past couple of years, from high-tech lifts to new places to stay, such as the contemporary Design Hotel Levi, all sleek timber and stone. Skiing, which is very snow-sure, runs over two hills surrounded by fantastically flat, icy panoramas, where the slopes are illuminated in midwinter. Inghams offers seven nights B&B at Levi Design Hotel, from £1,949 per person including flights and transfers. inghams.co.uk
Hafjell, Norway
Haell hosted the slalom events at the 1994 Lillehammer Winter Olympics and it’s still competing for every skier’s attention, with the smart mountainside ski-in, ski-out village, Favn which opened here last season. Set at the 2,670ft Mosetertoppen gondola top station, Favn offers panoramas across mountainous Langsua National Park. There are self-catering apartments to rent, Restauranthuset for lunch, apres-ski and dinner, and a handful of shops.
There are also nearly 30 miles of slopes, making Haell a sizeable Norwegian ski area. Nearby, Lillehammer (home to the Olympic Museum) is the entry point, a two-hour train ride from Oslo. Three nights in a self-catering apartment in Favn, sleeping two costs from £650. haell.no
Pyhä, Finland
Set on a low, tree-lined Lapland mountainside, Pyhä sees spectacular sunrises across the PyhäLuosto National Park and eastern flatlands. Its new offering, Kultakero, is a contemporary ‘fell village’ with the first of its two cool-looking, grey-timber apartment buildings opening this season, along with shops, restaurants and bars. It forms part of a new resort hub, near the existing ski-in, ski-out Hotel Pyhätunturi, which recently had a timber-topped makeover. The resort has just seven miles of runs, but they’re gorgeous ones, with off-piste and plenty of cross-country to augment them. Crystal Ski offers seven nights at Hotel Pyhätunturi for £692 per person, half board, including lift pass, flights and transfers. crystalski.co.uk
Åre, Sweden
Scandinavia’s biggest ski resort has 55 miles of piste. The mountain runs are impressive, as are the views of the old lakeside town below, filled with bars and restaurants. The main area is great for intermediates, while Åre Björnen at the far end is a family paradise, and Duved, a shuttle bus away, is the place for learners. Stay by the frozen lake or up on the slopes, connected by a funicular, for jaw-dropping panoramas — early winter might be dark but spring days are long and bright. Ski Safari offers seven nights at Copperhill Mountain Lodge, half board, from £1,999 per person. Alternatively, try its 10-night Åre and the Arctic trip with four nights in Åre, including one night on a sleeper train, three nights in Bjorkliden ski resort and two nights at the Icehotel in Jukkasjarvi, from £2,499 per person. Both packages include flights and transfers. skisafari.com
Geilo, Norway
Midway between Oslo and Bergen on the edge of Hardangervidda National Park,
Geilo has 21 miles of runs, sweeping views across the Hallingskarvet mountain range and good facilities for families. Two ski areas — Slaatta and Geilolia — are on either side of the valley, separated by scenic Ustedalsorden lake. During lockdown, the slopes were improved and restaurants revamped. Crystal Ski offers seven nights at a forest cabin with sauna, sleeping two, for £847 per person, including flights and transfers. crystalski.co.uk