So getting to our sole purpose of our trip to the arctic – seeing the Northern Lights.

We had booked our tour package with a company called Aurora Village weeks before we left. I think it’s the biggest company which runs these tours in Yellowknife. Their service, the facilities in their village, and the attentiveness of their guides were all excellent. Since it is Japanese run, you probably wouldn’t expect any less from them.

We really didn’t know what to expect on the first day of the aurora viewing. The bus pulled up to the hotel to pick up all the guests. It was very strange to me that there was a bus solely for Japanese tourists and another for the remaining tourists. Our guide that night was named Rachel. She spoke in English and Mandarin to everyone on our bus, but could also speak fluently in Japanese. I found out later that all the guides were multilingual, which was pretty amazing.

The only complaint I had about the tour were the ghetto school buses they provided to take us to the village. It was pitch black along the way and it was also incredibly bumpy during our 30 minute ride. Aurora Village actually has a lot of decent shuttles for smaller groups for their day tours, but I guess they make most of their business with the aurora viewing, so the buses at night were full. Also because there was a good forecast for the viewing on our first night, our bus was just packed to the brim. It totally felt like a Chinese tour because the majority of the tourists were from China, so it was super noisy the entire way to the village. (T__T)

Anyway, it was better once we arrived and got divided into our teepees. While it was pitch black everywhere around, the paths were well lit and you could make your way around easily once your eyes adjusted to the dark. It was extremely cold the first night we were there. -41°c with the windchill!! That was honestly the coldest I had ever experienced in my life.

After we got settled inside our teepee, one of the guides gave us an orientation of the facilities outside. While there was an open area right outside our tents to view the aurora, there were also two other areas further up on a hill which were more secluded. They also had a deck where they have heated seats (almost like a kotatsu, but shaped more like bumper cars with a sleeve over top). The washrooms were heated as well, and they also have a restaurant and gift shop inside the village. Overall they were very well equipped.

The viewing on the first night was probably the best out of all three nights we were there. There was already a green arc in the sky even before it approached midnight. I even saw my first shooting star that night. I was sort of expecting to see the aurora appear like how I’ve seen them in postcards, with huge bursts of colours lighting up the sky. However, when the aurora came, it was definitely less vibrant than from the photos. It actually seemed more green in colour, but it was very fluid, almost like it was dancing in the sky.

I sort of gave up capturing the aurora on my camera that night, partly cause I didn’t know I needed special settings on my camera (and it was kind of late trying to figure that out) and also because I didn’t have a tripod with me. Aurora Village actually has tripods for rental, so I got those for our remaining nights. Also because it was our first night, I didn’t really know what to expect of the cold. I ended up wearing all the layers of clothes I brought with me, but totally could have used another pair of socks. I definitely came prepared for the second and third night.

[The photos I’ve posted here are from our third night of viewing.]

Overall it was still a pretty good first night, even though I’m positive I caught a cold from the outing. Inside the teepee they served unlimited warm drinks, as well as soup with bannock. The bannock was really yummy because you could roast it on top of the stove before slathering butter on top. The teepee itself was also well insulated, which was great for us because every little bit of warmth helped.

By the time we got back to our hotel, it was 3:30am. My sleeping schedule was definitely ruined. However, we managed to make it work for the rest of our time in Yellowknife. I won’t post as in depth for the remaining two nights of the aurora viewing, but overall it was pretty amazing seeing the lights in person. =)