Lofoten Islands, Norway: Private Trek

Read on to learn about our 2024 Private Trek in the Lofoten Islands of Norway.

Newsletter sent out on June 10, 2024:

Hello from above the Arctic Circle! We arrived about 10 days ago for our third annual trip to the Lofoten Islands of Norway. In this newsletter, read on to hear about our private guided trek, places we stayed, and to see a few photos from our travels thus far.

When we first came to the Lofoten Islands in 2022, Jonas had an unexpected reaction to this place. He knew that we was going to be blown away by the landscape and the sheer beauty of this place, but he wasn’t expecting to feel immediately connected to it in such a deep and personal way. When he first stepped off the ferry from Bødo, he describes the feeling as if there were a box inside his chest that he didn’t even know was there and this place held the key to unlock it. And each time we return, he’s discovering more of what’s hidden inside that box. Secret connections to a place unknown feels a little ‘out-there’ but it’s been a quiet force that keeps us coming back to this Arctic Archipelago.

This year, we’re in the Lofoten Islands for the entire month of June. We began our trip with a 4 day private guided trek for a family. This was actually our first ever private guided trek! It was really fun for us to be able to curate the experience to their desires and also to what we thought would be fitting for a short trip to such an expansive place.

The Private Trek:

We began with two days staying at the Nusfjord Arctic Resort. A place we highly recommend visiting if you ever make it to Lofoten! Tucked into the fjord, the resort is a small village of fishing cabins with an ocean-side spa, a couple great restaurants, a bakery and cafe, and a small art gallery. You can enjoy incredible hiking right from the town or just explore with a jaunt to the lighthouse.

Our first day we spent exploring the town and trails around Nusfjord and enjoyed an amazing dinner at Restaurant Karoline. On day two, we set out for the peak of Ryten, overlooking Kvalvika Beach. This is one of the more popular hikes in the National Park, and for good reason. It’s beautiful. And by coming this early in the summer season, the trail wasn’t too crowded at all.

We enjoyed the ocean-side sauna and hot tub in the afternoon and had pizza at Oriana Kro in the evening. On our third day, we set out on a RIB boat across Reinefjorden to the small town of Vinstad, which is only accessible by boat. We journeyed on foot to Bunes Beach and sipped hot coffee from a thermos before catching our ferry back to town. This evening, we checked into Holmen Lofoten, a family-run hotel on it’s own rocky island.

Holmen is well-known for it’s restaurant, offering a tasting menu that is inspired and crafted from local ingredients. It was a pleasure to stay at Holmen, and most memorably, to hike with Holmen’s very own mountain guide, Audun.

Audun was raised here on Lofoten and has hiked some of these mountain peaks more than 2,500 times. He is a part of this land in a way that we are so honored to have learned from. We spent the day with Audun on a trail just above the town. We enjoyed lunch up high with incredible views, and even dipped in the freezing cold creek on the way down. Audun embodies kindness with a welcoming spirit, zeal for life, and and patient compassion. You can hike with Audun exclusively through staying as a guest at Holmen Lofoten.

Our trip wrapped up with another amazing meal at Holmen, and an early ride to the airport. The great thing about super early flights is that the sun doesn’t set here in the summer. So the 3:30am alarm wasn’t so bad with the sun still up!

We had such a great time on our private trek and hope to have the opportunity to host more of them in the future!

Visiting Lofoten this time around, we are reminded of the responsibility we hold as visitors to such precious landscapes. It is so important to treat these outdoor spaces with care. To practice the principles of Leave No Trace, to research and be aware of local customs, to respect the rules, and to support small and local businesses. We are so grateful to visit such beautiful landscapes, and we hope to leave it as we found it so that the next visitors can enjoy it as well.

Since our last group departed, we have been staying in a timeless feeling cabin tucked into a fjord. We’ve been getting out for some hikes, enjoying down time, and catching up on some freelance work. We even met a couple friends from Australia and spent the weekend backpacking together beneath the midnight sun!

Up Next: Lofoten Group Trip!

One week from now, we have a group of 10 folks arriving to Lofoten to join us on an 8-day group trip! We are beyond excited. The weather has been amazing thus far, and regardless of the weather, this place is worth the many flights it takes to get here.

We’ll send out a newsletter in the week or so following our group trip with photos and updates!

Thank you so much for being here and for supporting our small business- even if it’s just by reading this newsletter! Every bit of support makes a huge difference for us. We love what we do and we are so grateful to keep doing it! Talk soon!

Chasing Blue Skies!

-Mimi & Jonas