There are eight countries within the Arctic Circle - Iceland, Finland, Norway, Sweden, Greenland, Russia, the USA (Alaska) and Canada.
Iceland only just makes it into the arctic circle, with Grímsey island in the far north falling just within. So technically Iceland is predimin sub-arctic given it's immediately south of the Arctic Circle.
The arctic and sub-arctic is renowned for:
Aurora displays - by far one of the best bits about being so far north is the northern lights, Watch more about what causes the aurora here.
Long, dark days (but not quite polar night where the sun doesn't rise unless you head a bit further north) - in the depths of winter, there may be just a few hours of daylight and in Lapland, heavy snow cloud can remain for days on end, giving very little daylight.
Long winters - there's potential for up to six months of snow, with the peak of snowfall being around Christmas and the new year.
Spectacular night skies - the aurora Is an incredible thing to see, but a clear night sky with no light pollution is also something to behold. Shooting stars and even an occasional meteor firing across the night sky. And occasional weather phenomena like this moon corona...
Minimal wildlife
It's unsurprising that you won't see much wildlife in some of the most inhospitable of places.
Iceland is home to Arctic fox, mink, rabbits and mice, but the reality is on land you'll see plenty of Icelandic horses and that may well be it. There are occasional visitors arriving from Greenland on icebergs, but the likelihood of bumping into a polar bear is quite slim.
Marine wildlife, however, is another matter, with seals, whales, dolphins and hundreds of species of fish. I hope you have more joy whale watching than our five hours in rough seas whilst on my stag do. Didn't see a single
thing and should have stayed in bed.
Finland is home to Arctic hares, artic fox, wolverine, lynx and smaller animals such as stoat - we tempted this one to see us with a few late night snacks...
And although they can only be considered semi-wild as they are taken care of and well fed over the winter months, these beauties are an absolute pleasure to be around...
Iceland has a quirk of having very few trees, in stark contrast to Lapland which has more trees that you could imagine and has around one person to every two square kilometres!
The best bit is to get your hat and gloves on and to get outside. Getting the cold, fresh air in your lungs is the most incredible feeling and the softness of your surroundings, with only the sound of your own footsteps in the snow, is something quite spectacular.
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