We Traveled 3500km To Sleep In A 5-Billion-Star ‘Hotel’ In Norway And It Made Our Jaws Drop

We drove my old rickety Ford Escort from Helsinki to Troms with my adventure buddy Mika-Pekka Markkanen. Then visited Senja and Lofoten islands and drove back. The whole trip took 12 days and we drove more than 3500km. We slept our nights mostly in a wind beaten tent that was definitely not suitable for winter camping in Norway. One windy night we found shelter from an abandoned camping site and got to sleep in a cold fire hut. At least we got a shelter from the wind. There was a shower too, but we didn’t have any coins for hot water, so we had an ice cold shower.

One unforgettable night we spent in a cave, with water dripping on my face the whole night – like a Chinese torture. Afterwards, we learnt that ancient human bones and skulls from the cave have been found there. One miserable night we spent in the car, which was my travel buddy Mika-Pekka’s birthday. Later that night we decided to try to pitch the tent, which then flew away by the wind, but got stuck to some bushes, thank god. Mika-Pekka’s camera gear was inside the tent. The tent landed in a puddle and the camera gear got soaked, with luck on our side nothing broke. In about 5 minutes our car keys got stuck in the car’s back trunk. Panicking for a while and cursing the night we got ourselves together and managed to retrieve the keys. Finally, we got some sleep for a few hours in the wet tent, with the roof flapping on our faces due to some crazy winds.

Ok, that’s enough. I guess you all got the point that this was no luxury holiday in a 5-star hotel. Instead, for most of the nights, we had a 5 billion star hotel! Enjoy the images, pandas!

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When the sky exploded

A G2-class geomagnetic storm hit earth and produced the most beautiful Northern lights I’ve ever seen!

Billion star hotel

To create this image I set my camera on a tripod and took a 30 second exposure shot. During these 30 seconds I ran inside the tent and light-painted a heart on the side.

Aurora eruption

It’s like a volcano, only erupting with auroras!

The Northern lights started usually right when it got dark enough for them to show up.

Flaming mountains

Crystal reflections

The green sky

Aurora river

Water flowing down from the mountains carve these small rivers on the sandy beach in Kvalvika beach, Lofoten.

The faint one

Sometimes there’s only faint auroras. But they can be beautiful too.

Sea, you are scary

Big waves crashing on the rocks made it scary to photograph here.

Aurora strike

My favorite shot from this trip. Waited for the lights to hit the Andenes lighthouse and when they did, I only got few attempts to get the shot. And here it is!