A new season has made its way up here in Finnmark, on the coast of the Varanger fjord: autumn. Even though the Arctic autumn means stronger winds, colder temperatures or a shorter daylight period due to the approach of the Polar Night which will begin next month, this season brings also joy through its multitude of colours!
The Vadsø Municipality has put on its autumn clothes also, as the rest of Northern Norway did: the town is now multicoloured in shades of yellow, orange and red, the surrounding tundra is reddish, and the civil twilight is intensely blue, period followed by dark nights with green skies due to the Northern Lights!
Watch the video below for an idea of what autumn means for the inhabitants of Vadsø! (There’s also the French version of this video on the Aurora Labs Youtube channel!)
Would you like to experience this magical season and feel on your own skin the vastness of the coloured autumn landscapes of Vadsø and Varanger? Then take a look on the Aurora Labs website to see how to arrive and what is there to see and do in this beautiful region!
Have you been dreaming about visiting the Arctic? You know, that location where most – if not all – of your childhood winter fairy tales take place? Right now it is more accessible than ever for you to visit, and you have the chance to create your own stories from this fairyland! But the Arctic is huge – there is a ton of destinations to choose from!
In this article we’re going to talk about a charming, remote Arctic place, well off the beaten track, with a world of attractions just waiting to be discovered! I’m talking about Vadsø – a beautiful Arctic town in the Eastern Finnmark region of Northern Norway – a place where life follows the typical rhythm of the Great North! So why choose Vadsø as your next Arctic destination? Here are the top reasons:
1As already mentioned, it’s a remote place, well off the beaten track, and unless you come here because your family or friends recommended you to do so, you can be pretty sure that nobody among the people you know have previously been here! And despite the remoteness of Vadsø, it is actually pretty easy to arrive here by plane, by boat or even by car (see here how).
And not only that it’s easy to reach us – but no matter what transport means you choose, you’re in for a typical regional experience: the small Widerøe planes work like buses, with stops in-between, where you don’t need to get off the aircraft! Or, coming here by boat, means you will enjoy one of the most sought after Norwegian experiences – the Hurtigruten boat trips! And if you come by car, you will drive along one of Norway’s National Scenic Routes – the National Tourist Route of Varanger! And the cherry on the cake – any transport you choose, it is very probable that you’ll be doing it under the Northern Lights if you visit us in winter!
3Vadsø is located in the beautiful region of Varanger – which is a historically and culturally rich region, as it lies at a Russian, Finnish, Sami and Norwegian crossroads, just like all of Lapland. You can enjoy here stories and visit places dedicated to the Vikings or to the Second World War. You can live the legends of the Sami people, who live close to nature and are actively involved in reindeer herding and who try to protect their fascinating traditions! Or you can hear stories about trolls and witches, as well as see with your own eyes remains as old as the Stone Age! Hint: take a look at Aurora Labs’ road trips!
4The climate in Vadsø is milder, as the European tail of the Gulf Stream protects the town of extreme winters, and you can enjoy Arctic activities in a much more weather-friendly environment! At the same time, don’t worry: the rough Arctic climate with extreme cold, is within just a few minutes of driving from here; so, if you’d like, you *can* get to know what that’s like, during a short road-trip towards the East or West of Vadsø!
A consequence of the warm ocean current that passes through the Varanger Fjord and Barents Sea, makes Vadsø a unique place, where two typical Nordic vegetation types meet: the boreal forest and the Arctic tundra. Again, in a matter of just a few minutes of driving, you can transit from dense birch forests to the vast tundra, where the trees finish (and no, there is no error in this sentence!)
5There are lots of activities to enjoy here, in any season: Northern Lights activities and safaris, snow mobile safaris, dog sledding activities, skiing, fishing, nature walks in all seasons, summer Aurora experiences, scientific activities and workshops, road trips, sightseeing, the Midnight Sun, photography… just to name a few!
Listening to the Northern LightsPolar night in the Varanger fjord in Northern NorwaySnow mobiling in Vadsø
As for the nature lovers, you will be amazed by sights of the Arctic tundra in both summer and winter, or by the vast, contrasting landscapes along the Varanger Fjord! Or, during the cold season, frozen rivers or the Arctic winter’s frost are a must-see! And of course, each season’s natural phenomena are a breathtaking and impressive experience: the Northern Lights or the Light Pillars in winter and the soothing Midnight Sun in summer!
Frozen river near Komagvær
6Vadsø is located on the 70°N parallel; and because of Earth’s tilt with respect to the Sun, this location benefits of a perfect yearly balance between the Polar Night and Polar Day: not too little and not too much at the same time, but enough for you to get to experience what this is like! During the Polar Day period, you can enjoy the beautiful Midnight Sun, which lights up the sky even during the night! As for the Polar Nights, when the Sun never rises for almost 2 months, you can enjoy the magnificent Polar Blue and beautifully coloured skies during the “daytime”, and the chance to maybe even see the rare daytime Aurora!
7Local cuisine! You can have a taste of the delicious king crab, or reindeer meat or fish! And speaking about fish – don’t hesitate to try lutefisk (which is fish with, err… poison!). If you’re here around Christmas, do taste Julebrus (which literally translates to “Christmas soda”). And don’t be afraid of the typical Norwegian brown cheese (“brunost”)! And for desert – eat “lefse” (any kind!) and I promise you’ll be right back at the shop to buy more! See a few examples of dishes (with a bit more details) by clicking here.
8You’ll almost surely encounter reindeer at least once during your stay here! You can spot them on the roads outside Vadsø, or even on the Vadsøya island, roaming free in the wilderness! They’re a beautiful sight anywhere and anytime, and are excellent models for your photos!
In addition, Vadsø, as like the whole region of Varanger is an awesome place for birdwatchers! Not only that it is a place where an astonishingly lot of bird species can be found, but it is one of the most accessible Arctic birdwatching destinations. Even if this region is well above the Arctic Circle, the winters here are milder than in other regions of the Arctic. This is the reason why some bird species, choose to come here from more northern latitudes for overwintering. (More details here, section “Birdwatching”.)
9For those of you who seek also a bit of “urban” experiences, know that we do have a cinema, a few shops, restaurants, bars and cafés, you can find hairdressers and antique stores… we even have a music festival each summer! Our town may be small, but it offers a big range of possibilities for everyone!
And now the bonus reason! Recall everything you read up to this point: from typical transportation to get here, Northern Lights, historically and culturally rich location, weather-friendly climate with two typical Arctic vegetation zones, Arctic activities, Arctic phenomena, Arctic fauna… And now think that you get to enjoy all of this away from mass tourism! With Aurora Labs you will carry out all the activities in private, so that you’ll have a chance to live the typical Arctic life in your own rhythm. Immerse yourself for a few days into the sea of tranquility, silence and calmness that surrounds this beautiful region and live life at the local rhythm!
Aurora Labs is now the happy owner of its very first drone! I (Sergiu) am completely new to this world of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) – a world that’s extremely promising, considering the advantages that such a device brings: not only for cool photos and videos, but also for weather footage, Northern Lights shooting from a different perspective, and even… well… the fun of piloting one! 🙂
I can’t wait to become accustomed to flying the drone and thus to make it a close part of Aurora Labs’ activities! But this, of course, is subject to weather and, equally important, to space weather! I’ll explain next.
Influence of Space Weather on Drones
Space weather does influence the use of drones! When solar flares, CMEs or coronal holes occur, a geomagnetic storm is likely to occur on Earth. The nice thing about these storms is that they mean strong and beautiful Auroras here in the Arctic. …But they also mean interference of communication systems – such as GPS!
Modern drones strongly rely on GPS for locating themselves, for maintaining their position under stronger winds, for returning back to their initial starting point when you press the Return-to-home button on your radio controller, or when your drone’s battery is at its alert level and the vehicle needs to land soon.
These geomagnetic storms – which, by the way, occur even in summer! – can interfere with GPS, meaning that the positioning system becomes very inaccurate and the drone might land in completely different places than the defined home point, or, in worse cases, it forces your drone to enter the ATTI mode (or manual mode), as GPS may even become unavailable.
How to take space weather into account when flying your drone?
Space weather is many times omitted when talking about flying a drone securely. But it’s a very important factor to take into account!
So, next time you take your drone out, do check the current Kp index, or planetary index, as it is called scientifically. To keep things simple and short, Kp measures the global geomagnetic activity, and takes a value from 0 to 9, 0 meaning a very low (or no) activity and 9 a very strong geomagnetic storm.
As a general rule, values of Kp ranging from 0 to 4 can be considered safe for flying your drone. When Kp becomes 5 or higher, a geomagnetic storm is under way and you must think twice before piloting your drone, especially if you’re not used to piloting it manually.
Ar(c)tistic is one of Aurora Labs’ projects, dedicated to promoting the Arctic and the Northern Lights as artistic sources of inspiration on a larger scale. I would love to see more works of art dedicated to, or representing Arctic-related elements, such as the Aurora or Nordic landscapes. The project also encourages you to carry out your self development activity (meditation, yoga, just to mention a few) while being immersed in an astonishingly beautiful landscape.
The first contributions to the Ar(c)tistic project have been submitted by Alex and Doina B., and already displayed on the Aurora Labs website! Check out how awesome they all are! See them here: https://auroralabsnorway.com/arctistic
So why not give your artistic side a boost, by directly carrying out your artistic or self-development activity right in the middle of the Arctic nature? Singing, painting, dancing, meditation – to just mention a few – are all suitable here in Vadsø and Varanger, whether they’ll happen under the Northern Lights or under the Midnight Sun.
The plus? A breathtaking and a beautiful unspoilt nature, which will surround you completely. Just pure, raw Nature.
If you’d like to be part of this project, contact me now, and take part yourself in the Ar(c)tistic initiative!
Meet Aurora Labs’ brand new Android app! Aurora Forecast brings you the forecasting of Aurora Borealis and Aurora Australis right at your fingertips! In the app’s easy to use and light interface, forecasting the Northern Lights and checking the current space weather conditions have never been easier!
The new app is available on the Google Play store, for the moment on Android devices, and is completely free and contains no ads! And you can choose English or French for its interface!
You think the Northern Lights season is over, now that the Midnight Sun is slowly taking over the night sky? Think again!😉 There are always Northern Lights here at Aurora Labs! The Aurora is there, up in the sky, even in summer – it’s just that you can’t see it because of the continuous sunlight! But you can hear it with me if you come here in Vadsø! So, my app is useful even in summer!
In addition, if you live in more southern latitudes (…or more northern latitudes in the Southern Hemisphere!), and nights are still dark, you might have a chance for a geomagnetic storm! And with our app you might be able to see if that happens! And who knows, you might see, even a glimpse of the Northern (or Southern) Lights!
So go ahead and give it a try! And if you need help in interpreting the info, head over to the Aurora Forecast page on the Aurora Labs website, for a quick introduction. Or, if you’d like to understand everything there is about the Aurora and space weather, why not take my Learn the Aurora Online workshop right from the comfort of your own home?
And if you have any suggestions for the app, drop me a line! I’ll try to update it as often and as best as I can 😊And don’t hesitate to rate it on Google Play and help it to become known!
