​Join Jonathan Stenvall to Varanger, a true paradise for the bird photographer. Photograph King Eider, Steller’s Eider, Gyrfalcon and a great variety of sea-birds on the cliffs. For the Eider ducks you will use the famous floating hides in order to get the best images. Additionally you will visit the bird island of Hornøya, one of Europe’s finest and most accessible sea-bird cliff colonies. 

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Trip highlights:

• Two days in the sensationally productive hides for the crazily handsome Arctic specialties King eider, Steller’s eider and Long-tailed duck – a true world attraction, where the birds very often come in really close and we are photographing from an angle right by the waterline. Other operators often offer only one day in these hide

• Good chance to see and with a little luck also photograph Gyrfalcon and Hawk owl

• Night hide session with artificial lighting, focusing on photographing mountain hare. With a bit of luck, we may also spot Arctic fox. At this time of year, both animals are beautiful in their fluffy white winter coats

• Hoary redpoll, Siberian tit, Common redpoll, Pine grosbeak, Red squirrel and Siberian jay at well-run bird feeding sites

• Good chances to photograph Purple sandpiper and sometimes also Willow ptarmigan

• Fantastic opportunities for winter landscape photography, where the snow-covered and windswept Arctic tundra meets the rugged shores of the Arctic Ocean

• Transport by snowmobile sled in the tundra birch forest and in the taiga pine forest

• The tour guide takes you to his favorite spots and you get your own photographic advice and top tips in a small group of like-minded people

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VARANGER
A unique Spring/Winter week, where we have selected some of the very best bird and landscape photo opportunities on the Varanger Peninsula in Norway. Up here, the taiga forest meets the windswept, snow-covered tundra and the dramatically rugged coastlines of the Arctic Ocean. Ancient agricultural lands dating from long before the Viking Age stretch in a thin border along the coast. Inside of that, after a narrow fringe of low birch forest, the open tundra stretches mile after mile within the Varanger Peninsula National Park. At this time of year, these are a snowy winter landscapes in sub-zero temperatures, in wonderful Arctic winter light that can offer strong pastel colors, long shadows, dramatic clouds, snowfall and brilliant photo opportunities of many different kinds. The snow-covered tundra landscape shows us the still reasonably undisturbed quality of the Arctic wilderness up here.

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KING EIDER, STELLER´S EIDER, COMMON EIDER AND LONG-TAILED DUCK
We photograph the almost unbelievably elegant Arctic ducks King eider, Steller’s eider, Common eider and Long-tailed duck from custom-built floating pontoon hides, where we lie, dry, safe and comfortable, right at birds’ eye level just above the waterline. These world-unique and world-famous floating hides give us phenomenal opportunities for close encounters with these truly picturesque High Arctic ducks, so we decided to invest two days in these hides, in order to maximize our chances of fine pictures of these charismatic birds, taking into account the always fickle factors of light and weather.

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NIGHT HIDE
The tour includes a session in a night hide with artificial lighting, focusing on photographing mountain hare. At this time of year the animals are stunning in their fluffy white winter coats. The hide offers excellent opportunities to photograph mountain hares, which often interact with each other. In snowfall, the images can become truly magical. Many award-winning photos have been taken from this hide.

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THE TUNDRA
We also meet the landscapes of the snow- and wind-shaped Arctic Tundra in several places up here, both in the mountains and down at the edge of the mountain birch forest. A snowmobile sled ride takes us to a bird feeding site near a mountain stream, where good chances are usually possible to photograph species such as Hoary redpoll, Common redpoll, Siberian tit and Willow tit. There is also often a Hawk owl or two around here and sometimes Ermine or Willow ptarmigan are seen here.

 

THE TAIGA FOREST
In Pasvik National Park we meet the wild Taiga forest with its Scots pines, plus some of its winter bird species. Here we go for a snowmobile sled ride out into the woods and take photos at a proven feeding site for squirrels and birds such as Siberian tit, Pine grosbeak, Willow tit, Siberian jay and sometimes a Hawk owl paying a visit. At times Willow grouse hang around here, in their snow-white winter dress.

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Itinerary

• Day 1 (Dinner)
  Arrival in Kirkenes. Departure by minibus through the magnificent Arctic mountain landscape to the small fishing port town of Båtsfjord on the northern coast of the Varanger Peninsula. Dinner and overnight stay at the hotel.

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• Day 2  (Breakfast  – Lunch – Dinner)
  Early departure before dawn to the well-positioned floating hides in Båtsfjord. Experience incredibly close encounters with Arctic ducks such as King Eider, Steller’s Eider, Common Eider, and Long-tailed Duck in their finest breeding plumage. A breakfast package from the hotel is enjoyed in the hide. Half a day in the hides is followed by a RIB boat tour among the many Arctic ducks and gulls in the fjord. Overnight stay and dinner at the hotel.

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• Day 3  (Breakfast  – Lunch – Dinner)
  Early departure before dawn for a second session in the floating hides in Båtsfjord. This is to maximize photographic opportunities for the Arctic ducks, in case weather or light conditions were not ideal the previous day. A breakfast package from the hotel is enjoyed in the hide. Half-day session in the hides.
  In the evening, we visit a hide for mountain hare photography. Overnight stay and dinner at a hotel in Båtsfjord.

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• Day 4  (Breakfast  – Lunch – Dinner)
  Late breakfast, followed by a focus on photography along the coast. Here we look for Purple Sandpipers as well as landscape opportunities.
  We then continue our journey to the taiga forests of Pasvik National Park. Overnight stay and dinner at a guesthouse in Pasvik.

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• Day 5  (Breakfast  – Lunch – Dinner)
  Early breakfast at the guesthouse. Full day in the taiga forest, including a snowmobile sled trip to a private bird feeding site that often attracts species such as Pine Grosbeak, Siberian Tit, Siberian Jay, Red Squirrel, and occasionally a Hawk Owl. There is also the option for a wood-fired sauna by the Pasvik River for those who wish. Overnight stay and dinner at the guesthouse in Pasvik.

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• Day 6  (Breakfast)
  Breakfast at the guesthouse, then transfer in our minibus back to Kirkenes airport.

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