Preparation and Logistics for Seeing the Northern Lights
CLOTHES
You want to be comfortable to enjoy your trip. Best locations for seeing the Northern Lights will be only around 2,000 km south of the North Pole. Bottom line: it gets very, very cold.
If you’re not used with Arctic weather, you will be unprepared. Get many layers of clothing, including lots of thermal undergarments and socks, good boots, wind stopper, warm and light sweater, gloves, hat, etc.
You’ll spend a lot of time outside in the cold admiring the show or waiting for it without moving much (even moreso if you want to take pictures). In a couple of hours the cold will get to you if you’re unprepared.
Your location will obviously affect your comfort, but don’t let that stop you from selecting the best one. As mentioned earlier, locations on the coast tend to be warmer than inland sites. Don't forget to check the weather reports for the temperatures you'll expect to get. Do this before leaving for your trip so you will get to pack all of the clothes you need.
If you go on a tour, check what is on offer: can you warm yourself in the bus? Will they make a fire in a traditional-style tent? Is there any hot chocolate or any other refreshments? These will help tremendously.
Our recommendation: If you have no experience with cold weather, go to a mountaineering shop, tell them when and where you’ll be going and ask for advice – you’ll thank them later. Bring more layers than you think you’ll need; after your first cold night you’ll end up wearing all of them.
WHAT ELSE TO BRING
A pair of eyes is enough to enjoy the Northern Lights. But the quality of your experience will be influences by a number of other things that you will bring with you. We already discussed clothes, as this is a crucial aspect of your trip.
A good camera is almost a requirement. The aurora is such a mind blowing experience that you will want to keep memories from your trip and show pictures to your friends. Also, a good camera may catch a better glimspe of the aurora than you can see with your naked eyes, especially in nights of weak intensity.
The issue is that your standard point and shoot camera, that takes great pictures during daytime, may not help with the aurora; in fact, it might just be useless for this and may just create disappointment with this particular experiene.
A good DSLR camera is your best bet, as it will allow for manual settings such as longer exposure time, higher sensitivity to light (ISO setting), etc that will make for beatufiul pictures; you will also need manual focus, which some camera may not allow. More on photography in our next chapter.
A tripod for your camera is another requried accessory. To capture the northern lights you will need longer exposure times (i.e. the duration of light hitting the camera's sensor). With longer exposure times your camera needs to be absolutely still, otherwise your pictures will be blurred; even the smallest movement will ruin your pictures, so a tripod is necessary (and it will help with simpler, point and shoot cameras as well, not just with professional ones). If using a DSLR, a camera remote will also help (once again, details in our Photography chapter).
A small flashlight may also help for walking around and for adjusting your camera setting. Be sure to bring a small one as bright light will prevent your eyes with getting used to the darkness. A red light-emitting flashlight is even better, as it doesn't disturb your darkness accommodation too much.
If you're driving around yourself, some hot chocolate and other refreshments will also be a good idea, as you'll be spending hours away from restaurants, stores and gas stations. A smart phone is invaluable and will help with maps, navigation, weather and aurora forecasts. Be sure to charge it first!
An extra battery for your camera is also a good idea, as batteries last less in cold temperature. Finally, bring enough memory cards for your camera, you will be taking countless pictures with various settings before you can have some to be proud of.
THE DARKNESS AND YOUR EYES
Another point to make is about how your eyes get used to the darkness. Keep in mind that this is a gradual process that doesn't happen instantly. To best enjoy the Northern Lights you will need to allow your eyes to get used to the darkness; this means that you will need to switch off any light sources such as car lights, flashlights, smart phone and table screens, camera screens, etc - any artificial sources of light, basically.
It goes without saying that you should be as far as possible from light coming from buildings, vehicles on the road, street lights, etc. Remember that even if you don't see these lights, they will affect your viewing experience if you're too close to them.
After your eyes get used to the darkness, you will see a much brighter aurora and your experience will be more intense. This adjustment to darkness will start after a few minutes and be complete after 20-30 minutes. Any artificial source of light will set it back, and the brighter it is, the higher the impact; dim the brightness of your phone and any other screens as much as possible and use a small flashlight if needed (ideally with red light; you can use a red marker on a regular one for this).
HOTELS AND FLIGHTS
Just a quick final note here: if you'll be visiting one of the most well-known locations for aurora viewing during the high season, you need to book everything in advance. Don't wait until the last minute to book hotels, flights and car rentals. Many others may have done that already and you may find yourself with very few options left.
Expedia is a good place to book your hotels and rental cars, while Kayak is a good site for finding flights (once you've found the flight you want, you can book it on the airline's site).
The next chapter deals with Photographing the Northern Lights.
