Day 7 (6 April 2007)

The plan was to get up at 06:00 and drive in style to the Ice Hotel, have a look round (and a drink in the ice bar), take the 6 hour road journey back to Tromso, followed by a shower and a presentation dinner.

But first, we had to get our huskies ready. This was a sad time, as we knew that we would soon have to say goodbye to our faithful companions. It was also the time for final photographs - with Pepsi and Sprite, of course.

However, we soon learned that the mountain road from Norway to Sweden was blocked, so instead of a one km sled ride, we did a 58 km sled ride through forests and over frozen lakes. This was delightful, but we were in for another very long day.

We spent an hour or so in the Ice Hotel, which is all it is cracked up to be. The hotel has small dormitories, suites and two deluxe suites (these being the only rooms with locks on). The suites are designed by famous architects from all over the world. I did get my drink in the ice bar.

Eventually, our transport arrived. The conditions on the mountain roads seemed truly appalling to British eyes (even to the Scots in the group), but our Norwegian drivers took it in their stride. We stopped to have a look at the Aurora Borealis, which was truly amazing.

We had our dinner (but not the presentation) at the Viking Hotel in Narvic, and arrived at the hotel at around 01:30. The day wasn't over for our Norwegian hosts, however. They had to take the huskies back to the Wilderness Centre, unload then and feed them.