Thursday, 18 August 2022

Today we will be operating on Þruma RIB for our Premium Whale tours and on our lovely vessels Eldey and Hafsúlan for the Classic Whale Watching tours. Make sure to dress appropriately for the tours as it is always colder on sea than on land.

• CLASSIC WHALE TOUR | 09:00, 10:00, 13:00, 14:00 and 19:00
• PREMIUM WHALE TOUR | 10:00, 13:00, 14:00

COVID-19: No restrictions are in place at this time, although we do recommend that you ensure your own safety by washing your hands frequently and maintain distance from others. Hand sanitising stations are available throughout our premises. Mask use is optional.

Report from Eldey: We had wonderfully calm seas, with a bit of swell but mostly very pleasant sailing this morning. The visibility was excellent, and we were therefore able to admire the impressive mountains around us, and see the smoke from the volcano on the Reykjanes peninsula. We reached an area full of seabirds, and soon we discovered two minke whales were feeding here too (separately). We were able to see the minke closest to us a few times, but both individuals were diving quite long. When we moved on to the next area we spotted two more minke whales. These two came closer to the boat, often completely out of the blue. While it was a nice surprise element, the unpredictability also made it tricky to see them in time to get a good look at them. Next we spotted one more minke whale, but then our time was up and we had to head back. Although we had seen five minke whales and some were quite close, we felt like we wanted to offer our passengers another chance to see individuals that will hopefully surface a bit more regularly and we therefore offered everyone complimentary tickets to come on another tour to see these magical animals. 

- Eline van Aalderink

Report from Hafsulan: The sun was accompanied by some northerly winds as we started our morning sail. The breeze was really light, but still really sharp letting us feel the cold icelandic air. We continued our sail for a while, no animals yet in sight, but enjoying the views of the whale fjord, Esja mountain and the erupting volcano from a distance. An individual minke whale appeared for a very brief moment, some of the passengers managed to have a short glimpse of this speedy cetacean. We did not get so lucky with this small whale, so we decided to try our luck in another area. We made a stop in an area we had heard there was a few other minke whales feeding, we saw a few fins again from a distance of at least 2 different individuals around us, but then suddenly we had two very close minkes that popped up multiple times. It was hard to say for sure how many different individuals, at least 4 to 8. They started to get closer and closer to us, feeding intensively, to the point we had the luck of seeing a lunge feed barely a few meters from us. This sight was incredible, never ever got to see the belly of a minke from that close. We were even able to identify one individual as humpie, who has been seen here for about 11 years, amazing to be able to track their history. After these great sights, it was time for us to head back to Reykjavik.

- Anna Richter (minke whisperer)

Report from Eldey: The sea was even more calm and smooth than this morning and when we got out of the harbour we started to have a very pleasant weather with some sun. We went quite far before we had our first sighting with a big pod of around 10 white-beaked dolphins. They were quite calm and we could slowly approach them to see the beautiful white pattern of there back. There was a little one quickly coming to the surface near its parents and we stayed a while with them. When other boats arrived we left towards south west and spotted from very far a big blow. We got closer seeing the blow here and there until  we were close enough to recognize a humpback whale. We could see the animal go for a few fluke dive with a 5min dive in between. After seeing the animal when too many boats aggregated around the humpback we decided to leave. We the saw a 2 minke whales a bit tricky to spot but they surfaced a few times around us, sometimes close to the boat. With the sun the way back was very pleasant and we could talk about conservation.

- Miquel Pons 

Report from Hafsulan: Surrounded by sun and suncream on we set sail on a much calmer ocean. After a 40min sail we were far out into the bay and saw a blow in the distance! It was a fairly big blow so we were waiting patiently to see if our hunch was correct. And then another blow, this time we could clearly see it was a humpback whale! This individual was quite a relaxed whale and teased us a bit and didnt show the fluke often between dives. Then it finally gave in and showed us its fluke a couple of times. In the same area was also a minke whale! It popped up behind us a few times but was a fairly elusive individual. On our way back to harbour we managed to see the humpback whale again - a nice sunny send off!

- Melanie Magnan

Report from Elding: From a sunny afternoon to a grey sky, Iceland will keep you on your toes. We started our evening sail in a cold and grey weather. The swell though was still quite light, nd not with too many white caps which made this said still be enjoyable. Good thing the whales do not mind this kind of weather ! Given the whales we observed this afternoon we were quite hopeful we might be able to find them again. Though it was much harder to find something tonight, the whale from the previous tour appears to have left the area, and no cetaceans were to be seen in the horizon. Not the best tour sighting wise so far, but we will keep trying to spot something until the very last minute. Wildlife can he quite tricky sometimes, and follow its own rules. The fin of a minke whale has been briefly seen from a distance only by a few passengers. After a long search, we got to the conclusion that unfortunately no cetaceans will be seen on this tour. That is why complimentary tickets were offered to people so they have the chance to come and experience the marine life in Iceland again.

- Anna Richter

Red necked phalarope, atlantic puffin, common guillemot, razorbill, northern gannet, glaucous gull, lesser and greater black backed gull, herring gull