Included
Local knowledge
The spots along Rypefjord that work in each wind direction, and when to move.
Aurora nights
Hunt it with me
A whole evening or a whole night in Rypefjord, with the person who has photographed this sky since 2012. Small groups, your own camera, and someone who actually lives under it.
PriceOn request
DurationWhole evening or night
BaseRypefjord, Hammerfest
SeasonLate Aug to mid Apr
01 / What it is
No bus.
No schedule.
This is not a coach tour with forty people and a hot chocolate stop. It's one photographer who lives here, taking you to the places along the fjord where the sky opens and the town lights don't get in the way.
We go when the sky says so. If the aurora comes up at one in the morning, we're still out. If it's clear all evening, we shoot all evening.
Bring your camera, any camera that can do long exposures, and Simon will set it up with you: exposure, focus, composition. Come without one and just look up; that works too.
Included
Camera help
Hands-on settings for your own camera or phone, so you go home with your own frames.
Bring
Warm clothes
Properly warm. Standing still at −15 °C is colder than walking at −25 °C.
Bring
A tripod
If you have one. If not, say so and Simon will work around it.
Who you're going out with
Not a guide.
A photographer.
Simon has lived in Rypefjord for years and has photographed this exact sky since 2012. When the November 2025 solar storm turned it red, NRK and Dagbladet ran his pictures the same morning.
That's who is standing next to you in the snow, telling you where to point the camera.
Read this before you book
The aurora needs a clear sky. Keep an eye on the Rypefjord forecast.
Nobody can promise northern lights. What decides the night is cloud cover over Rypefjord specifically. The weather here can differ from Hammerfest town a few kilometres away. Check the local forecast in the days before, and check it again on the day. If it's clouded in, Simon will tell you honestly and you move the date rather than waste your evening.
Useful: yr.no (Rypefjord) · NOAA space weather · a Kp of 3+ is plenty this far north.
02
Ask about a night
There is no fixed diary. Tell Simon roughly when you are in Hammerfest and he comes back to you, then you pick the night together once the forecast is clear.
01
Send the dates you are around
Your whole stay, or a couple of evenings that would suit. The more room you leave, the better the odds of a clear sky.
02
Simon answers personally
Usually within a day or two. He will tell you honestly what the season and the forecast look like for those dates.
03
You settle the night together
The final call is made a day or two ahead, when the cloud cover for Rypefjord is actually readable. If it closes in, you move it.
How it works
You say when
you are here
03
Straight answers
Will we definitely see it?
No. Anyone promising that is selling something. But Hammerfest sits directly under the auroral oval. On a clear night in season the odds here are as good as anywhere on earth.
What if it's cloudy?
You move the date at no cost. Simon would rather reschedule than take you out under a grey lid.
When is the season?
Late August to mid-April. September–March is the heart of it. Around midwinter the dark starts in the early afternoon.
How do we get there?
Rypefjord is a few kilometres from Hammerfest centre. Tell Simon where you're staying and he'll sort out the meeting point.
Can he teach me?
Yes, that's half the point. Bring the camera you have and you'll leave knowing how to use it in the dark.
What does it cost?
Simon confirms the date first and tells you the price for your group. Bank transfer, Vipps or cash on the night, whatever is easiest.