TUESDAY, 16 JULY 2019

✔ TOUR ON SCHEDULE|  20:30

Report from Eldey: This was such a unique experience, different from most of our tours. In light rain on the mirror flat seas we found the pilot whales ones again! Such a rare species here in the bay. What made it even more special was the fact that the animals were right next to Reykjavík! These were at least 30-40 pilot whales. Our main whale areas were later scanned, they were very quiet, little bird life and no cetaceans. On the way back we managed to get another great look at the active pilot whales as they traveled further out on the bay.

-Sigurlaug Sigurðardóttir

✔ TOUR ON SCHEDULE|  17:00

Report from Eldey: The rain did not stop pouring on this tour. Still we had some very determined passengers staying outside with the guide helping to spot and take pictures. We tried to find the pilot whales that the other boat saw and headed far in the bay to the north to where they were seen last. The bay looked bare, the odd bird flying past but definitely for the productive life we have been seeing the last weeks. Something changed and its very interesting and its impossible to know for sure as so many variables determine the food; sunlight, currents, salinity, tides, winds and the list goes on. We were unsuccessful of seeing them unfortunately but instead we found a minke whale, a very fast moving minke that we really had to watch carefully for. One surface sequence was nice and quite close for some of our passengers to get ok photographs of but still we felt it was not up to the standards we would like so we offered our passengers complimentary tickets to return for another tour we hope with more abundant wildlife. 

- Megan Whittaker

✔ TOUR ON SCHEDULE|  14:00

Report from Hafsúlan: Mother nature, you are AWESOME. Who doesn't love surprises? And on this tour we definitely were surprised. As usual, we headed out towards our main sighting areas about an hour away from the harbour and sighted a pod of probably 10 white-beaked dolphins only about 40 minutes out of the harbour. They were in 2 groups and one of them was quite curious about us and came within short distance of our boat. Just as we were starting to follow them on their travel, we received news of a visitor species in the bay. Of course all of the crew became very excited as we moved towards the area and sighted about 35 pilot whales!! An incredible sighting that only the summer months offer us. They were traveling and it was clear to see the matriarch leading the pod. There was just so many of them and we got so close, seeing their round heads, which clearly make them look different from dolphins. We could not leave their presence, it was just to wonderful of a sighting, so only once we realized we would be very, very late back if we did not turn around, did we say goodbye to them, but mesmerized by what we just got to see.

- Kristin Vidja

✔ TOUR ON SCHEDULE|  13:00

Report from Eldey: The rain was with us the whole trip. Nonetheless, the sea was flat and beautiful. It just looked like a mirror! We were sailing calmly under the rain when a pod of 7 white-beaked dolphins appeared in our starboard side. They were just milling, totally relaxed. As we approached them, they were heading away from us. Thus, we decided to try to go away and try to something else, in order to don't disturb them. Soon afterwards, another group of the same species appeared really close to us. It was a really nice sighting! There were around 5-7 individuals, just traveling calmly throughout the bay. There were even two babies in the group! Such a pleasure to observe them in their natural environment! After a few minutes, we encountered another two pods!! The bay was full of white-beaked dolphins! In the way back to the harbour, a group of 5-6 harbour porpoises decided to surface a few times in front of our eyes to close a really nice tour, full of dolphins and rain.

-Elena Gutiérrez Ruiz

✔ TOUR ON SCHEDULE|  10:00

Report from Hafsúlan: No wind, no rain and no waves this morning made for absolutely wonderful sea and spotting conditions. We could see so far and the landscape looked very impressive with the clouds hanging low in the mountain ranges. It was an amazing FOUR SPECIES tour again! We first encountered a pod of 8 white-beaked dolphins that were milling in the area and were planning to stay with them a bit. But, dealing with nature, plans often change quickly just like today when we spotted a large blow about 1 km into the distance. It was a humpback whale that was being annoyed by another pod of dolphins. It was amusing to see how they were jumping around the whale and the whale responded by sharking, so straightening up it's body, possibly to try and look bigger towards the dolphins. As it did, the dolphins left it alone, so maybe it's strategy worked, and we got to witness the humpback lift it's beautiful fluke out of the water before going for a deep dive several times. While waiting for the humpback to come to the surface again, we also saw 2 minke whales close to our boat as well as a couple shy harbour porpoises. There must be a lot of food around again, with so many species together in one area, peacefully sharing the resources. We would have gladly stayed longer but as time ran out we turned back and began to process all the great things we just saw!

- Sabrina Voswinkel

✔ TOUR ON SCHEDULE|  09:00

Report from Eldey: With somewhat Icelandic weather, we started the first tour of today with almost no wind or waves, but the skies covered in clouds and a few rain drops during the tour. But these conditions were perfect for whale spotting and it took us about an hour to spot our first flock of sea birds. When getting closer to them, we were very luck to see not just one but 2 minke whales that were feeding in very close proximity to each other and to the boat. The animals made it a bit challenging for us, with surfacing only once most times, but all our passengers got a good look at them. When more boats were approaching the area we decided to move on and it took us only a few minutes to get to see our first of 2 pods of white-beaked dolphins. The pod consisted of approximately 10 animals, with a few calves in between. Trying to get closer to them we almost missed the jumping second pod of about 5-7 individuals on the other side of the boat. But only almost. Those guys were more active when we approached them, possibly hunting and socializing. A beautiful sight to watch with our tour coming to an end.

-Christina Winkler

Bird species identified today: Atlantic puffin, northern gannet, northern fulmar, arctic tern, common guillemot, manx shearwater.

We are sailing from the Old Harbour in Reykjavík today. The seas should be calm today, but if you are prone to getting sea sick, we do have sea sickness tablets available free of charge at the office and on board. Make sure to dress warmly and make use of our warm overalls as it is always colder on sea than on land. For more information contact us by email elding@elding.is or by phone +354 519 5000.