Honeymoon in Lofoten: Three Weeks, Two Spaniels and One Old Defender

Some couples honeymoon on a sun lounger. We took the dogs, a roof tent and a 23-year-old Land Rover up past the Arctic Circle, and I'd do it again tomorrow.

The plan (such as it was)

In summer 2024, Sioned and I pointed Nevis north. Nevis is my Land Rover Defender. She's 23 years old, she's the dream machine, and she has absolutely no frills. Oscar and Heti, our two spaniels, rode in the back like they owned the place, which to be fair they pretty much do.

The whole trip came to about 4,500 miles through 9 countries, with 7 ferry crossings, 8 mountain summits and a moment I'll always remember: crossing into the Arctic Circle. By Sioned's count it also took somewhere between 15 and 20 packets of super noodles. The heart of it was about three weeks on the Lofoten Islands. And Nevis got us all the way up and all the way back without a single hiccup.

Nevis on the long road north through the pine forest

Rain first, then the sky caught fire

I won't pretend Lofoten welcomed us with blue skies. For the first part of the honeymoon it was mostly rain and cloud. Lovely for moody black-and-whites. Less lovely for drying socks.

Then came an evening at Trevarefabrikken on Heimøya. It's a cultural centre where you can hang out, stay and eat, and the building backs right onto the sea. We had brilliant pizza and a glass of wine, and just as we finished the sky exploded into colour. It felt like the start of a proper run of weather, and that's exactly what it was: a couple of magical weeks we were very lucky to get. It's one of those evenings that sticks with you.

Walking out towards the sunset at Trevarefabrikken

The sky exploding into colour over the sea

A note on light: when the weather breaks after days of grey, keep shooting until well after the sun has gone. The colour often builds in the sky for a while after sunset, and wet rock and calm water will throw it straight back at you. Put something solid in the frame (a building edge, a figure, a headland) so the colour has something to sit against.

Hiking in for the northern lights

The night that sums up the whole trip started with a long walk. We hiked in for hours over rough ground, carrying all our gear, with two spaniels in tow, through mist the whole way and hoping for a clear night. Eventually we reached one of the most spectacular beaches in Lofoten and pitched camp.

Then, like someone had flicked a switch, the sky erupted. Greens, purples and ribbons of light danced above us, and everything went quiet in that way only nature manages. After all the chasing, waiting and hoping, the northern lights found us. The best rewards really do tend to come after the hardest journeys.

Aurora ribbons over the mountains above the beach camp

Aurora tip: get your composition sorted while there's still some light. Fumbling for a horizon in the pitch dark with cold hands (and a spaniel sitting on your tripod leg) is no fun. A tripod, a wide lens and manual focus set before it gets dark will save you a lot of swearing.

On top of the islands

Lofoten from the tops is something else: wild peaks and views that go on forever, with layer after layer of blue ridges dropping into the sea. Camping up high with those views was, in Sioned's words, her "fave camp out ever". I'm not arguing.

Panorama from the ridge, looking down over the bay and peaks

Freezing swims, beaches and red cabins

Our days soon fell into a rhythm of windswept hikes, beach campouts, local food and late-night fires. There were several saunas too, and we ate our body weight in pastries. And there were swims. "Freezing" doesn't really cover a dip in a Norwegian fjord, but the grin afterwards says it was worth it.

In between there were those classic red rorbu cabins, sitting on stilts over the water. They're photographed to death, and you can see why. Against grey rock and dark water that red does all the work for you.

Red rorbu cabins on stilts above a calm inlet

The little things

Big landscapes are brilliant, but the small details are often what take me straight back to a place. There was an old weather station screwed to a weathered red wall, and a wooden crate stacked with drying fish heads under a hand-painted "Monkfish heads for sale" sign. Quiet frames like these give a set of images some breathing space between the big views.

Detail tip: when the light's flat and the mountains are hiding in cloud, go small. Textures, signs, colour and repeating shapes all look great in soft, even light.

The long way home

We wrapped up the honeymoon by starting the long journey home from Værøy. There was nothing fancy about any of it. It was just the open road, a few ferry crossings and a ton of memories. Raw, real and full of adventure, which is everything a honeymoon should be.

A last moment with the dogs on the boardwalk before heading south

Next chapter: winter

We're already prepping Nevis to head back north, and this time it's winter. Think snow-covered roads, icy mornings, more northern lights and Christmas in a proper winter wonderland. Sioned's verdict on Lofoten was "the BEST trip and I can't wait to go back again", so it looks like we're going. It's never dull with my crew.

If you're an outdoor or adventure brand, or you've got a shoot in mind somewhere wild, I'd love to hear from you. Drop me a line through the Contact page.