We have just spent a fortnight hiking through the mountains and valleys in the powdery snow, snowshoes on our feet, sometimes in stormy weather, other times under a clear blue sky, but always with the same sense of wonder!

We continue our hike with softened footsteps in the countryside momentarily frozen by the snow. The absolute quiet here is sometimes broken by an encounter with a white hare or a sea-eagle flying overhead.

In the evening, wrapped up in warm jackets, we spend hours admiring the Northern Lights that dance in the starry night just above the small port where we are staying.



Below, on the narrow coastal strip where the islands’ inhabitants live, it’s the cod fishing season and business is in full swing.
 While many small fishing boats are busy in the immense Vestfjord, on land hundreds of workers clean and dry the fish on wooden racks. 
The manufacture of Stockfish (air-dried cod) is a speciality of the Lofoten Islands that has existed for generations, as described in the account by the 15-century navigator Pietro Querini.

Many ports on the islands are a hive of activity. A fleet of small fishing boats is constantly coming to port to unload its cargo of fresh cod before heading back out to sea. On the only road that crosses the Lofoten Islands you often come across tractors carrying cod to the large wooden racks facing the sea.

For a long time now we have been eager to organise an exceptional tour here in the depths of winter. The hikes we’ve been on this winter have convinced us that the Lofoten Islands are just as spectacular in their winter coats as under their green, flowery covering in summer. 
The details of our new winter 2014 tour in the Lofoten Islands will soon be uploaded onto our site.