Alta is a small town of 19,000 inhabitants, although in Norway it is classed as a city. It is also called ‘the city of the Northern Lights’. The reason for this is that Alta lies at the perfect latitude to view the Aurora Borealis.
The Northern Lights isn’t the main reason for my visit to the city, although it will be an added bonus if I can see them again. I previously saw them in Iceland in 2010. The main reason for my visit is to witness the Polar Night. This is a phenomena caused by the Sun staying below the horizon all day. This is the opposite to the Midnight Sun that I witnessed in Tromsø in July of this year. The Polar Night in Alta lasts from mid November until mid January and although the Sun never rises, there is a period of twilight around midday, which is what I want to witness and photograph.
My journey to Alta was uneventful. The trip to Heathrow was plain sailing, not like last time, and the flight via Oslo was routine. The only really notable event was a visit to a sports bar in Oslo airport. No football here, but Nordic sports. A pint of a Christmas beer brewed in a local brewery set me back 100 krone, about £11. I knew then I was back in Norway.
My first blast of the cold came when I left the plane at Alta and stepped outside with the temperature on the airport wall reading -9C. Fortunately, a taxi was waiting outside the terminal and in no time, I was in my hotel.
Arrival in Alta
I stayed at the Rica Hotel, a three star hotel in the new business centre of Alta. The room was a superior one and had a desk and chair to work from, along with a sofa and chair to gaze out of the window from.
The light snow that was falling when I landed soon ceased but I decided to settle in my room, have a meal and a couple of drinks and get an early night. The meal was first class. I opted for the stockfish, which is unsalted fish, especially cod, dried by cold air and wind on wooden racks on the foreshore, called “hjell”. It was accompanied with a carrot purée, salted potatoes and bacon in a dish of bacon fat, which tasted great drizzled on the potatoes. The meal was extremely tasty and very filling.
I washed down my meal with three bottles of beer from Mack Brewery in Tromso, which I had visited earlier in the year. The whole meal came to 501 krone, about £55. Expensive, but well worth it.
My first day in Alta finished with an early night – around 21:00, but not before I had made enquiries about a ‘hunting the Northern Lights’ trip which I will do on day three, weather permitting.