Wednesday, 23 August 2023

Today we will be operating on Þruma RIB for our 10:00, 12:00, 14:00 and 16:00 Premium Whale tour and on our lovely vessel Eldey and Hafsúla  for the 09:00, 10:00, 13:00, 14:00, 17:00 and 19:00 Classic Whale Watching tours. Make sure to dress appropriately for the tours as it is always colder on sea than on land.  

• ALL TOURS ON SCHEDULE
• CLASSIC WHALE TOUR | 9:00, 10:00, 13:00, 14:00, 17:00, 19:00
• PREMIUM WHALE TOUR | 10:00, 12:00, 14:00, 16:00

Report from Eldey: With the sea looking like a real lake, we sailed out in the sunny bay to spot the animals. The visibility and the lack of waves were on our side this morning, and we could easily spot any sign of life in the bay. Our first encounter was with 10 harbour porpoises, calmly swimming in a scattered way and then gathering as a group to continue their way. Not even 5 min later, we spotted a minke whale next to us, that was very predictable to follow. Continuing our trip, we spotted another minke whale that we knew quite well: we had Humpie the minke, a whale that has been seen here in the bay for over 10 years! Humpie popped up so close to our boat that we could actually hear the loud blow. On our way home, we also saw 2 more harbour porpoises and another minke in the distance, as we enjoyed the sunlight on our faces.

- Milla Brandao

Report from Hafsulan: We sailed out with the sun shining and the sea was also very calm. These two factors meant the conditions were perfect for spotting cetaceans this morning. This allowed us to see 3 species! The first one we saw was only 30 minutes out of the habour. We saw 5-6 harbour porpoises. We saw this usually shy species surface many time to our front and right side. The further out we saw a minke whale. We stayed with this individual for a while which allowed us to have a great sighting. It even came very close to us for a bit. We could also see it had a very distinctive notch on the front of it's dorsal fin. Having left this baleen whale we now spotted 2 toothed whale species. We saw another 2 pods of porpoises. Next it was a pod of 7 white beaked dolphins. They appeared to be feeding. We saw them swimming in tight circles as well as blowing bubbles. The pod also started to bow-ride making our passengers very excited. On our way home we then spotted another porpoise.

- Rob Hyman

Report from Eldey: We sailed out of the bay hoping to accomplish again the sightings of this morning. As the wind picked up, we struggled to get our first conclusive sighting. Signs of whale presence appeared here and there, until finally 3 minke whales consecutively appeared skimming past us on their traveling way. Finally, the gem of our tour appeared: one minke whale, not more than 100 metres from us, was feeding. It suddenly turned out of the water as it lunge fed, showing its fluke and belly to all on the boat. Several times again, it fed, this time much calmly, showing the tip of its snout. This last sighing was the end point of our trip, as we headed home content of this last encounter.

- Alexandre Paumier

Report from Hafsulan: We sailed across the bay with a change of weather. The Northern wind was increasing and the sun went away. Despite the grey sky and the wind facing us, we still had good visibility and there were no waves. We saw many bird species around, and many times we got the chance to see Northern gannets flying right above us. Sailing further and around the bay made us seeing only a pod of 3 harbour porpoises that crossed our route. We tried our best but we could not spot anything else. So the crew decided to give complimentary tickets to all the passengers to have another chance to admire these marine mammals. 

- Marta Filippini

Report from Eldey: with a calmer sea than the previous tour, we sailed out ready to spot more animals. The landscape got us busy until we had our first encounter: the beginning of the sunset made a beautiful silhouette on the mountains of Snæfellness peninsula. But then we got to an area full of birds, scattered, but feeding. Amongst them, a couple of dorsal fins popped out on the surface and we had a pod of 10-14 white-beaked dolphins around us, including a juvenile following its mother, side by side. They were all going always on different directions and fast, feeding. Sometimes, coming very close, bowriding and letting us having a very nice view of them. Continuing the trip, we went to another area were we saw a minke whale and we decided to wait for it a little bit. This minke was a bit tricky, but we still could see it a few times more, closer to our boat on the back. After saying goodbye to this minke, we came back home enjoying the beautiful colors of the sue setting behind us while heading to the harbour.

- Milla Brandao

Report from Elding: We started the evening with a beautiful orange sky, and as the tour progressed the sunset became more and more incredible. With this background, it was pleasant searching for the wildlife of Faxafloi today - particularly with the added bonus of a calm sea. We spotted a few dorsal fins of white-beaked dolphins, probably 8 individuals spread out over three smaller pods. Some of the individuals were curious and came to inspect the bow of Elding, looking at the passengers standing just a few meters away from them. The dolphins stayed with us for a good moment, but then we caught the glimpse of a minke whale and headed a few hundred meters further on. We could see the minke whale for one more surfacing sequence, but after that she took a long dive and we lost track of this agile swimmer. After a quick circle around the area it was then time to head back, enjoying the sunset as it painted the sky around Snæfellsjökull red and overcast Reykjavík with pink clouds. 

- Eline van Aalderink

Northern Gannet, Atlantic puffin, sooty shearwater, manx shearwater, herring gull, glaucous gull, lesser and great black back gull