Summer comes to Lapland

In the eternal daylight of Lapland's summer, life erupts with an intensity reserved for lands where winter's grip loosens but briefly. Nordic pines and Norway spruce stand sentinel, their blue-green needles stark against pearl-white skies, while mountain birch marks the tree line with twisted, dancing forms.

Below, cloudberries glow amber among carpets of wild blueberries and lingonberries. Reindeer move in great herds, their hooves clicking like castanets on stone, their summer coats sleek and brown. Dwarf birch and creeping azalea hug the ground, while arctic cotton grass waves its white seedheads like surrender flags.

The air teems with insects rising from the warming earth, feeding countless migratory birds. Bluethroats flash brilliant gorgets, and long-tailed skuas patrol overhead, their tail feathers streaming like ribbons in the endless twilight.