In his quest to see the Northern Lights dance, John Gregory-Smith has every base covered. Yet there\u2019s every chance that his expedition to northern Finland could turn out to be the most disappointing trip of his much-travelled life.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n I am feeling guilty. It\u2019s that feeling you get when you have done something wrong and no one has found out yet. You want to undo it quickly; recall the email before the whole office reads it or stop your WhatsApp group from seeing the wrong picture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I\u2019m lying on a frozen lake in Finnish Lapland. It\u2019s 10.30pm and I\u2019m staring up at the Northern Lights. They came out about half an hour ago. As they blazed across the sky for the first time, wow, did they have my attention. Incredible. It\u2019s what I\u2019ve always dreamed of. So I lay down to watch. But now I\u2019m bored, as they have turned white and look like light pollution. I have lived in London all my life and I\u2019m very used to walking around at night and seeing a bright sky and this doesn\u2019t seem any different. It\u2019s that I\u2019m feeling guilty for thinking. Judging by the clapping and general appreciative whooping behind me, I am the only one on this vibe. But this is not what I signed up for. I don\u2019t want to see one of the wonders of our natural world and be underwhelmed. Where are the colours? This ethereal experience should not be monochrome. I\u2019ve been misled and want my money back.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I sit up and decide that because it\u2019s -15\u00baC I have an excuse to go to my room. No, John, shame on you. I can see the old lady ringing the bell and leading me through the streets of King\u2019s Landing. I have to stay. Damn you, short attention span; damn you, Northern Lights. I decide on a change of scene, so I wander over to a group of keen amateur photographers, all tripods and headlights and talk of exposures. One of the group calls us over to see a picture he\u2019s just taken using a low-exposure setting: green light scored across the star-strewn night sky. My blood boils. I can\u2019t believe it looks so much better in a photo. The photographer tells me that modern cameras are so high res they pick things up that our eyes can\u2019t see. So why the hell am I here? In the middle of nowhere, freezing my tits off to see what looks like torchlight over a lake. As I silently fume, Mark, a photographer who\u2019s been here a week, looks at the picture and says:<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThis is just what we saw on Wednesday.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n Hold on, I think. Did he just say \u2018saw\u2019? I ask him and am almost afraid to hear the answer. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYes,\u201d he replies. \u201cThey are really weak tonight.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThank God,\u201d I shout. \u201cI was terrified this was it and that the whole thing was a ruse, something that looked amazing only on a camera.\u201d They all roar with laughter. And just like that, the guilt is gone. Email recalled. Picture retrieved.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This story first appeared in The Monumental NYC Issue<\/a><\/strong>, available in print and digital. Ever since I was young, I have adored travelling. I love the buzz of being somewhere new and feeling just a little out of my depth. The travel bug bit me young and as a grown-up my career has taken me all over the world. My bucket list has many solid scores through it: diving with great whites, riding into Petra on a horse, floating in the Dead Sea and climbing an active volcano \u2013 all ticks. But one has remained untouched: marvelling at the Northern Lights. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Finally, I have planned the trip of a lifetime, a four-day adventure to Finland to see the lights during the spring equinox. This is one of the best times of the year to catch a glimpse of the Northern Lights, with plenty of solar activity to set them off and lots of crisp cold nights for viewing them. I\u2019ve decided to stay at Torassieppi, a rustic retreat with a few cosy cabins dotted among a forest beside a frozen lake. The hotel might not be the swankiest around, but it\u2019s incredibly remote, set right in the wilderness of northern Finland, which has very low light pollution to aid aurora-watching, as well as enough daylight to get out and about and be adventurous. I love outdoor activities and this winter wonderland is ideal for snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, husky-sledding and snowmobiling. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The morning after the night before, I have all but forgotten the horror of the white lights. I\u2019ve moved on; it will be spectacular next time, I just know it. Tonight, I\u2019m leaving the comfort of my wooden cabin to stay in a canvas dome overlooking the lake. One side is purposefully left clear for guests to recline in bed and soak up the aurora, keeping nice and warm with a roaring fire. This is really why I booked the hotel: I love the remoteness and simplicity of the room. Not a soul around. Just me. But until then, I decide to burn some calories on cross-country skis. I pick a 10km track around the lake and set off. Fresh snow glistens on the majestic pine trees that line the path in the low light of the sun as I glide along. It\u2019s quiet and still \u2013 exactly why I came on this adventure. <\/p>\n\n\n\n At 9.30pm it\u2019s pitch black outside. I have downloaded an app called My Aurora Forecast and, despite the fact that I am sitting by the window in my dome and can see the overcast sky, I check it for the tenth time in as many minutes. Perhaps it knows something I don\u2019t. There\u2019s only a 23-per-cent chance of activity tonight. My heart sinks. It\u2019s already my second night. What if I don\u2019t see them again? I expel the wicked thought from my head and suit up with the much-needed outerwear provided by the hotel and head out into the night. I trundle through the wood and out on to the frozen lake. I can\u2019t see a single star through the cloud cover. After 20 cold minutes, I knock it on the head and go back to my lakeside room, snuggling up in bed with a glass of prosecco and a book, the embers in the fire still glowing. It\u2019s not all bad. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Over breakfast, there is much talk about the lack of aurora during the night. Despite the beautiful scenery and wonderful activities, we are all here to see the same thing and it is disappointing to have a night with nothing. This, I am told, is not uncommon. The lights dance to their own tune and many people go home without experiencing their rhythm. I nod, as if agreeing that I was lucky on my first night, but inside I\u2019m tingling with adrenalin. I have to see them in full force while I\u2019m here. I look down at my phone as if to send an email and check my aurora app. There\u2019s a measly 15-per-cent chance of action later. Fifteen. My heart sinks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n After a morning ice-fishing and an afternoon whizzing around on a snowmobile, it\u2019s finally dusk. I\u2019m going husky-sledding, riding off into the woods where there is no light pollution and, hopefully, fingers crossed, seeing the lights. I arrive at the husky farm where the beautiful animals are howling with excitement at the thought of being able to run off into the night. My sled is a simple wooden vehicle with six dogs attached at the front and me anchored to the back. My guide gives me some basic instructions and we tear off into the night. These animals are bred to run and they know the forest inside out. We ride across the lake and into the forest. The night closes in around me. I lean in and out of every turn as the dogs charge around a narrow track. The trees part and we race out into a clearing. They are running at full pelt and, there, up above us is a faint glow in the sky; like an eerie mirage, but it\u2019s there. The aurora is out. I have never experienced anything like this anywhere in the world before. I don\u2019t care that it\u2019s not green. It\u2019s utterly overwhelming.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s my last day in this winter wonderland and, despite the euphoria of last night, I am desperate to see the full Northern Lights show. I decide to go for a long walk around the lake to work off some energy. With snowshoes attached, I trudge off along the shoreline. I can see snow-covered cabins waiting for the summer to come and their families to breathe life back into them. It\u2019s so quiet; just the gentle crunch of my boots sinking into the fresh snow. The sky is clear today and the air cold. I stop for an app check. All signs are pointing in the right direction: there\u2019s a 60-per-cent chance of seeing the lights.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “It spills over the silhouetted trees and charges off through the sky.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n As promised, it\u2019s a picture-perfect night. Above the forest, the first aurora of the night is gathering pace. Like mist, it spills over the silhouetted trees and charges off through the sky, casting a green light over everything. I\u2019m gobsmacked. This is it. Suddenly, there are three separate auroras streaming playfully across the sky. They twist and turn, melting into each other, and then pull apart, going their separate ways over the horizon. I cast my mind back to the white light of a few days ago. This is completely different. It\u2019s spellbinding and more than I could ever have imagined. Finally, I understand the allure of this natural wonder. A picture simply doesn\u2019t do it any justice. The lights dance for you and seeing them is the only way to believe how utterly incredible they are. This is the trip I\u2019ve always been waiting for. I lie back and lose myself, completely enchanted by nature\u2019s magic. <\/p>\n\n\n\n John travelled to Finland with independent inspiring holiday specialist Artisan Travel<\/a><\/strong> on its \u2018Torassieppi \u2013 Tailor Made\u2019 holiday, with departures from January to April. The package includes transfers, three nights\u2019 half-board hotel accommodation and cold-weather clothing for the duration. All guided activities are optional and priced as extra.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Photography by Roman Babakin, Antti Pietik<\/em>\u00e4inen, bluejayphoto, Kati Finell, Sara Winter and FREESPAN\/Adam Lyczakowski<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"This](\"https:\/\/www.outthere.travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Facebook-shop_NYC-1024x1024.jpg\")
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