Aluminum foil and toes - the beginning of a wonderful relationship?

My obsession for Northern lights has reached a new level. For a while I have pondered if I should go to Lapland for a few nights. I stumbled over a photographer's web page with incredible shots of the auroras. My urge to drive up North was unbearable and after a restless nights seeing Northern lights in my dreams, I left towards Muonio two days ago.

On the way I had the joy of witnessing a lovely sunset with the crescent moon, Jupiter and Venus visible. Of course there was only one thought in my mind. Clear sky means a better chance to see some lights later on - if there is a show. Once in the cottage I monitored the web pages for aurora alerts. Was there ever a better reason to use the Internet? I don't think so :)

After hours of waiting finally a few web cams showed some activities. I packed my photo gear and the thermos filled with hot tea. All I needed now was to find a nice spot with an open field and a place to leave the car. This proved to be quite challenging because lots of snow was piling up on each side of the road. Eventually I got lucky and stayed there for two hours to take pictures of a very nice show. It simply magical. Two pair of thick socks did not help and I had to leave. The temperature was -26C and I decided to go buy some aluminum foil the next day.

Today I went first shopping (the foil) and then searching a couple of good viewing spots for the coming nights. I found a lake near Pallastunturi (a famous fell). I went to the middle of the lake and could look far into all directions, including a breathtaking view of the fells. Nearby was a small creek. I was surprised to see and hear the water running, which is not very common during this time of the year. The scene was beautiful and calm, I stayed to listen and think. I'll remember this day and the nature images in my mind for a long time.

I'm writing this entry on Friday night here in the cottage with a nice roll of foil next to me. So far I haven't tried it out, the sky is cloudy tonight. I gladly take the opportunity to get some sleep in advance for the next two nights. No clouds during that time in the forecast. Hopefully there is some solar wind coming this way as well, let's see :)

Crescent moon at sunset

Beautiful...

...aurora...

...borealis

Nice place

Fells in the background, the lake in front

Isn't this lovely

..

Black swan - friend or foe?

A glimpse into.. ?

Today finally I feel it's the right moment to write on this blog again. So much has happened during the last four weeks. I wanted to write earlier but it didn't feel right. It would have been just out of duty. And that's not what this blog is to me.

Opportunities sometimes present themselves - until recently I have only heard that phrase in some movies. But it is exactly what happened to me just as I was planing what to do during the coming months.

My passion for photography has led me towards videography. Two months ago I started with very small steps, having some kind of immature vision of its possibilities in the future. When visiting my very creative musician friends, I discussed this with them. They needed a new video for a children's song and were asking me if I would be up for the job! Seeing this as a good learning opportunity I agreed to do it. We shoot the video material during early February and it was a lot of fun working with those kids. Editing all the way to the final video was fun as well, but at times very frustrating because of my non-existing experience.

This project was exactly what I needed. Instead of doing the video I had other plans but none of it would have given me the same satisfaction. I did something which matters in some way in some people's life. And at the same time it matters a lot to me, I really enjoyed it with all my heart and had the full support of my wife. Now I feel like I caught a glimpse, a moment, of something I was looking for a long time. I'll keep looking because it's out there somewhere!

Aurora borealis

Aurora borealis (also called Northern lights). Already the sound of these two words are pure magic for me. Imagine parts of the sky glowing in - mostly - green light. Its form changing constantly. Sometimes the light is very bright with sharp edges, sometimes it's blurry. I usually go 'hunting' for them when I have the chance.

Since I arrived back home a few nights should have been good. There was only one problem: clouds. Every single time. Through facebook I joined a group alerting each other when the saw lights or chances were good.

Tonight was another alert. The sky was clear at -16C. I managed to convince my wife to join me in the search. The first few stops were not promising. Clear sky but no Northern lights, typical. So we went on to the next place. While driving there my wife saw some green light. I couldn't wait to park the car somewhere and get out. Fifteen kilometers Northeast of town into the middle of nowhere we finally found the perfect spot. What better way of telling what I saw than sharing a few shots:

A different arrival - the 'mental' gate

It's been a few weeks since coming back home and finally I arrived mentally as well. In the beginning a day felt like an hour and a week like a day. Seems I'm adjusting rather slowly.

Last night I finished arranging the pictures from our time in the US and a first strong wave of 'home-sick' hit me. People, places, it all felt so far away. Arriving home mentally was definitely the reason for that. Before I 'was' still in the US with our group, but now it really feels more like a memory. This is difficult but looking into the future makes me smile. There are so many ways and possibilities to reconnect with friends!

One other thing helped me (and still does!). A friend told me this:
"Don't have any regrets. The worst thing would be to go to the airport and thinking: Why didn't I see this or why didn't I do that."

Today the sky here is very bright, -10, sunshine and no clouds. So I went to our backyard for some pictures and I enjoyed a small vitamin-D dose (remember: no regrets :).

It's the sun!

Hats

Half past noon