B.C. man travels 3,800 km in 4 days for the northern lights in the N.W.T.
Ryan Fisher first saw the lights 2 years ago and 'I’ve been addicted ever since,' he says
Ryan Fisher says he's "addicted" to the northern lights.
"I went up with my daughter two years ago, and I've been addicted ever since," said Fisher, a nature photographer from Kamloops, B.C.
So this January, he packed his equipment, loaded up his truck, and drove from Kamloops all the way to the Northwest Territories to chase his winter obsession.
For three nights, he camped out in the loads of blankets in the back of his truck — all to spend a few hours under the magical aurora borealis.
It was an impromptu decision.
"It was a last minute kind of trip," he said.
He took off on a Wednesday afternoon with one goal in mind: Lady Evelyn Falls, at Lady Evelyn Falls Territorial Park near Kakisa, N.W.T.
He saw the falls for the first time in December, but wasn't able to catch the lights because of clouds.
"After seeing Lady Evelyn Falls, I had to go back."
"While I was at the falls, I was packing up to leave, and I started climbing up the snowbank," said Fisher.
"When I looked up, they had started right above me. That's when it all went crazy."
Fisher said that night, the pinks in the aurora were unusually vibrant to the naked eye.
"It's something that I actually find indescribable," said Fisher.
"You're outside and it's -30, you're actually frozen, and then this crazy show starts in the sky. You forget that you're cold. You kind of almost forget where you are.
"Everything just kind of eases. There's no stress, no anything. It's just watching this craziness go on in the sky.
"The photos don't even describe it for me, it's more like a full body experience," said Fisher.
"It's really something that everybody should have on their bucket list."
Fisher says he's going to do it again.
"I can't wait to go back."