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Over the past couple of days, our tours from Reykjavík have brought a mix of emotions as we witnessed an extraordinary and, at times, distressing series of events involving humpback whale in Faxaflói Bay.
On our Northern Lights Cruise on Sunday, we set sail under a completely snow-covered sky. While the clouds cleared up, the northern lights did not appear, but our guests were treated to a surprise encounter with a humpback whale that surfaced several times near our vessel. However, the mood quickly changed when we realised the whale was entangled in ropes. Recognising the severity of the situation, we promptly alerted the authorities and returned to the harbour with mixed emotions.
The following afternoon, our Classic Whale Watching tour proved even more eventful. Conditions at sea were relatively calm with a gentle swell, and we quickly spotted at least four humpback whales. One of them showed signs of distress, and we determined that this whale was clearly the same whale from yesterday, entangled in ropes around its body. Meanwhile, the Icelandic Coast Guard arrived with impressive coordination, deploying an armada and launching a small RIB boat to approach the entangled whale. We observed from a distance to avoid causing further stress to the animal.
At around 18:00, we received uplifting news - they had successfully removed the ropes, freeing the whale. The animal swam away unharmed, a truly heartwarming outcome to an otherwise tense situation!