The author Knut Hamsun described Northern Norway as “the land hidden behind a hundred miles”. Other writers have called it “the land of excitement” or “the land of the high flames”. These expressions capture the essence of this northern land – the great distances, the rugged scenery, the dancing Northern Lights of winter and the midnight sun that shines day and night in summer. Northern Norway consists of three counties – Nordland, Troms and Finnmark – which cover about a third of the country, and comprise some of the country’s harshest environments. Inland, the national parks are the habitat of bears and wolves, while out at sea, birds flock to the steep nesting cliffs. The mountains of Lofoten rise like a wall from a sea of islets to the northwest; here fishing has been the islanders’ lifeblood for centuries. Further north is Tromsø, the “Paris of the North”, which marks the start of Norway’s most severe terrain. Lying 640 km (400 miles) north of the mainland are the Arctic Ocean islands of Svalbard, almost 60 per cent covered in glaciers.