Arctic Circle Posters and Art Prints

My favourite part of my visit to Svolvær was my wander along Svinøya Island, where I saw (and smelled) plenty of stockfish racks, talked to locals out walking their dogs, and saw amazing scenes like this one. It was interesting how I could take multiple photos from the same spot and get some with perfect blue water and others where the water colour was hardly evident at all because of the strong reflections. As for the goat in the title? The bit of rock sticking up out of the mountains near the middle of the shot is the Svolværgeita, or the 'goat of Svolvær.'

The midnight sun shining over Lyngenfjord around 1am. It slowly worked its way behind the mountains, lighting up the clouds above them, until it finally peeked out and continued tracing its never-ending circles around the sky. Having gone for a long hike during the day, I was tempted to go to bed, but I am so glad I stayed up to see this...especially since I could see this from the living room of my rented house! Location: Lyngenfjord, Norway Camera: Nikon D750 w/ 24-70mm f/2.8 lens and Lee Big Stopper filter

A beautiful romantic sunrise at the arctic circle

Snowmobiles, walkers, and skiiers before had beaten down a wide path alongside the Juutua River in Inari.

Sunlight and Icicles

I'm sure that jetty is used by laughing children diving into the water in summer. On this day in early March, it was eerily quiet.

Later in the day, these clouds would be my bane as they sunk down and obscured the mountains completely. However, as I packed up to leave Å, the town at the end of the Lofoten Islands, they made for a beautiful sight.

Olstind Mountain stands high above the town of Reine in the Lofoten Islands of Northern Norway. From any angle, it is impressive, but in the RIB boat where I had a perfect view of the reflection on the calm waters, it was absolutely stunning.

What a morning this was. I arrived in Reine late at night and awoke to see the fjord stretched out in front of me and Olstind Mountain towering above it all. Gorgeous.

Is this a fjord or a glacier lake? It could easily be mistaken for the crystal clear waters of a glacier-fed lake like Lake Pukaki in New Zealand, but it's actually Lyngenfjord in Northern Norway. The incredible blue colour comes from the outflow from Strupen Glacier into the bay behind.

We got so lucky with the light on our second morning in Reine. Not only did we get 2 hours of continuous sunrise/sunset, but we got it in one of the most stunning places in the world. I considered it especially lucky that I was wandering around only to be assaulted by the smell of drying fish. And why's that lucky? Well, fishing and drying stockfish is one of the main lifebloods of the Lofoten Islands, but I didn't think we'd actually see any evidence of it on this trip as it was too early in the year. Apparently, this fisherman started his season early! I know this rack looks empty, but if you squint to the left you'll see the hanging fish on the next rack over.

I couldn't believe the light in the Arctic in early March. It seemed like golden hour went on for 2-3 hours after sunrise, and then it started all over again before sunset. It's a photographer's dream!

From the RIB boat that was taking me out for a winter snorkeling trip, I could see perfect reflections of the rorbuer that I called my home for two nights. I love how their red stands out against the natural blues and whites of the fjord.

Our first morning in the Lofoten Islands also coincided with the first morning they had seen the sun peek over the horizon since the early days of December. With colours like this in the sky, we couldn't help but to pull over on our drive out of Henningsvær and capture the scene. If you want to read more about what it was like to drive in Norway in winter, check out my recent blog post at http://www.bootsandabackpack.com/best-ways-drive-norwegian-fjord/ .

Unsurprisingly, the majority of the rivers in Lapland were frozen so thickly by March that you could walk across them with no worries at all. The River Juutua in Inari was not one of those rivers, given it had raging rapids fighting the freezing cold (and I mean freezing, since it was -33ºC the night before I took this). Those rapids eventually lost the battle slightly further downriver.

The vivid colors of Norway and the Arctic Circle. The houses really pop against the otherwise white landscape.

Flowers and greenery: two things you don't see in Reine in winter! This visit was a very different one to my previous two, and it was interesting to see the area in such a different light! This image and many more will be featured in my upcoming "Guide to Lapland and Northern Norway in Summer." If you'd like to learn more, head over to http://www.lapland.travel.

The beautiful clear skies of the morning gave way to moody clouds in the afternoon, which gave the gorgeous setting of Reine a completely different feel. I thought it worked particularly well for the beautiful little church in the town.

The aurora borealis seen above a remote Air Force facility in Alaska, above the Arctic Circle. A very vivid green northern lights is seen encircling the bright orb of the moon.

A few lone seagulls, stragglers from the massive squawking group chasing the fishermen out to sea that morning, waiting for the afternoon's catch and a possible feed at the docks of Reinefjord.

Six months ago, I stood on the Hamnøya bridge in Norway's Lofoten Islands watching the entire world light up in pink as the sun peeked over the horizon at 11am. 11am in summer couldn't be more different! The dominant colours were blue and green and everywhere around there was the buzz of activity, whether it was the never-ending stream of cars across the bridge or the boats crossing underneath the bridge below. Some things stayed constant though -- the mountains, the rorbuer, and somehow, my location on the bridge so I could get the same composition in two photos six months apart. Location: Hamnøy, Lofoten Islands, Norway Camera: Nikon DF w/ 16-35mm f/4 lens (left half), Nikon D750 w/ 24-70mm f/2.8 lens and Lee Big Stopper fil...

Barely two hours after the sun had risen on our first day in the Lofoten Islands in January, it started to dip back below the horizon. We stopped at a rocky beach on the side of the E10 (the main road through the islands) to capture this scene.

Reflections of the mountains surrounding Reinefjord, seen in the little harbour near the Statoil Station. Reine Rorbuer can be seen on the left side of the harbour.

After shooting the sunrise in Reine, we had about an hour of sunset light before the sun disappeared below the horizon again. We decided to head towards Å at the very southern end of the islands to see what we could find. What we found was this amazing view in Sørvågen, a village a few kilometers away from Å. The snowfall from the night before was untouched and the light couldn't have been any better!

The sky lighting up in gold a few hours before sunset as I walked along the Juutua River in Inari.

The coastline of the Lofoten Islands, as seen from the RIB boat that took me out snorkelling, could not have been more spectacular if it tried. The snowy frosting on top of the mountains just served to make it even more beautiful.

I reckon this cabin has one of the best views in Lofoten in January, when the sun sits just over the horizon for hours at a time. The sun had been up for just less than 2 hours when I captured this scene. 15 minutes later, it was gone for the day.

Huge waterfall in Northern Norway (Malselvfoss, to be exact) or a giant field of fluffy meringue? You decide!

What to do on a snowy afternoon when you've missed the other activity you planned? Hike up the side of a fjord through the snow! This was the view from the top of my walk from Svolvær in Norway's Lofoten Islands, looking out towards Kabelvåg and the Norwegian Sea beyond.

The rapids of Jäniskoski on the Juutua River near Inari in early July. Quite the difference from how I first saw it in mid-March! This image and many more will be featured in my upcoming "Guide to Lapland and Northern Norway in Summer." If you'd like to learn more, head over to http://www.lapland.travel.

One of the many bridges of Reine -- this one stretching between Hamnøya and Little Toppøya. We saw this scene as we headed back towards the fjord for our third, and final, snorkelling spot.

My first glimpse of Reine after I arrived on the 12.30am ferry. It was so quiet -- no seabirds squawking, no fishermen unloading boats -- yet so brilliantly lit that the rock walls of the fjord were visible even though it was a new moon. Taken in: Reine, Lofoten Islands, Norway Taken with: Nikon D700 w/ 24-70mm f/2.8 lens

Fog begins to build up in the mountains surrounding Tromsø. As I stood at the top of the Fjellheisen cable car, I could see these mountains go from golden to shrouded in fog in a matter of minutes.

In the cold of an Arctic winter, I couldn't think of many better things than a sauna with a view like this one!

Sometimes it's best just to forego organised activities and go for a wander in a new place. That's what I did in Svinøya, and not only did I get to talk to locals about the upcoming World Cod Fishing Championships, but I also got to see plenty of views like this one!

Just a cool map design presented to you by the artists at Arctic Fitness