Skagsanden Beach

Skagsanden is a broad shallow beach at Flakstad where the tide retreats over a very flat expanse of sand, leaving a film of water that reflects whatever is above it: the peaks behind, the sunset, and in winter the aurora, which is why it appears in a large share of Lofoten's night photographs. The reflection is best in the hour after the tide turns and in still air. Flakstad church, a red timber building of 1780 with an onion dome, stands just behind the dunes and often appears in the same frames. There is a car park close to the sand and little else, and the beach is exposed to northerly weather that can make it unpleasant in minutes.

What you actually see

• The mirror sand - a thin water film reflecting mountains and sky.
• Flakstad church - a 1780 red timber church with an onion dome behind.
• The wide flats - a very shallow beach exposed at low tide.
• The aurora reflections - the northern lights doubled in the wet sand.

When to go

September to March for the aurora, on clear still nights around low tide; June to August for the midnight sun over the same flats. Wind ruins the reflection, so calm conditions matter more than the season.

Honest expectations

The reflection depends on tide and wind and often is not there. In winter the beach fills with photographers and their headlamps and vehicle lights, which spoils long exposures. Facilities are a car park and nothing more, and the exposure to weather is total.

Nearby

Rambergstranda is a few minutes west; Nusfjord and Reine lie along the E10 toward the island's end.