Natural Exposures Explorers

Looking at a map, the Lofoten Islands should be a frozen wonderland in February since they are located north of the Arctic Circle. However, the climate is very temperate for their northern latitude due to the Gulf Stream hitting the Western Coast of Norway. This makes the weather very changeable, which we experienced. When the clouds eventually cleared, the Aurora Borealis appeared and the cooler temperatures enabled a fresh blanket of snow to make the scenery look like a winter wonderland. It was nice to spend all our nights in one place. Getting there required some effort due to the four flights we had to take. This trip was a special experience that called for a little patience with the weather.

This trip gave us a good historical, cultural and landscape experience in this very small underdeveloped country that spun off from Yugoslavia in the early 1990’s. I think I saw more different religious buildings during this trip than in the last decade. It is hard to fathom that a number of these churches and/or monasteries are over 1,000 years old.