Whale Diary

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    humpback whales dorsal fin and fluke
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    With the sun casting a pink glow in the sky, we bundled up and set sail. Just as we were pulling out of the harbour, we spotted the blow of 1 humpback whale! It was erratically lunge feeding and surfacing all around our boat, keeping us on our toes. We sailed further and soon found a pair of humpback whales that have been wintering nearby, Banana and Radar! 

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    humpback whale fluke
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    Today once again we had a lot of luck with the weather and whales! We set sail and found a total of 4 humpback whales very close to harbour! Two were travelling together, coming up in unison and showing the fluke! One we never saw resurface and the last one was solitary and acting a bit more erratic. We also spotted 4-5 grey seals on our way back home.

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    humpback whale
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    We sailed out in beautiful calm seas and the sun had just come up as we entered the bay. Just 10 minutes into the tour we had already found our familiar humpback whale, Banana! After a little loop around the area, we returned to find a second humpback whale and even saw a cheeky grey seal! All in all, a great winter afternoon in Reykjavík with its wonderful wildlife.

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    humpback whale surfaces very close to boat and onlooking passengers
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    Today we had a flat sea and clouds covering most of the sky. After about 2 minutes of leaving the harbour, we spotted our first humpback whale! We saw it lunge feed multiple times and it even came up close to our boat. As we moved on, we found another humpback whale close to Engey island and we even spotted about 5 harbour seals along the way.

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    humpback whale
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    The day was cold, but absolutely gorgeous as we sail out to look for whales in Faxaflói bay. After a while going in between the islands, we found a big blow from a humpback whale, very gently coming up to breathe. Then a bit further away, another humpback whale came up to the surface. We also had about 3 grey seals that were curious looking at our vessel.

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    elding ii whale watching private boat watching a humpback whale
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    With both the moon and sun shining, we bundled up on this chilly afternoon and set sail. Soon, we spotted the blow of 1 humpback whale! As we waited for it to resurface, 3 grey seals popped up around the boat. Shortly after, we spotted another 2 humpback whales; Banana and Radar. They seemed very curious as they surfaced right in front of us!

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    humpback whales
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    2026 started out with a great tour. Just a few minutes outside of the harbour we spotted 2 humpback whales. We spent some time with them as they showed nice fluke dives close to our boat - one even decided to breach. We then went out onto the calm bay and found 2 grey seals and a small pod of 3 harbour porpoises before heading back home to the harbour.

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    humpback whale fluke
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    Today we saw wildlife as soon as we passed the harbour walls - it was our good friend Banana the humpback whale. When more boats arrived, we left it in peace in order to minimise stress. We sailed to Viðey island where we came across another humpback whale that was busy feeding. After spending a while with it, we decided to leave it in peace and return home.

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    humpback whale dorsal fin upside down
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    We wet out with some wind and clouds covering the sun and were lucky to spot a harbour seal and a grey seal hunting. We searched all over the bay and finally spotted the blow of a humpback whale close to the entrance to the harbour, and as we got closer, we could see that it was travelling quite fast in search of food, rolling on its back and even slapping its tail.

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    passengers on a whale watching cruise look at humpback whale
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    Today was a very misty day in the bay and we only had visibility of around 150 metres. After passing by many seabirds, we spotted 2 harbour porpoises and soon after we found a lone humpback whale (identified as Banana), sleeping and logging on the surface - and we could clearly see details of its body and rostrum. We even spotted a harbour seal nearby.

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    humpback whale dorsal fin
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    Today was a wet and grey day at sea, as we sailed out on two boats. We split up to search a wider area and Eldey had quick glimpses of 3 pods of 3 harbour porpoises each. We then got word that our resident humpback whales were in the area and we headed there immediately to enjoy Banana and Radar for a bit before it was time to head back home.

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    humpback whale surfaces in front of passengers
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    It was a rather cold day but mostly still on the water, so it was easy enough to stay outside throughout the tour. We eventually we came across 2 humpback whales which happened to be our resident friends, Banana and Radar. They were always surfacing together, within meters of each other. After multiple close surfaces, we spotted 4-5 harbor porpoises.

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    humpback whales lunge feeding
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    We had quite a bit of wind and swell today which gave our passengers the true Icelandic experience! After a while, we spotted a pod of around 4-5 harbour porpoises! Soon after, we saw what we came for - a pair of humpback whales that surfaced next to us many times! In between surface sequences, we also spotted a harbour seal near the whales.

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    humpback whales near land
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    On this unusually warm Christmas Day, we sailed out of the harbour with some rain and soon found our favourite pair of humpback whales; Banana and Radar. They kept us on our toes as they followed the fish in all directions and while we were watching them, a grey seal popped its head up right next to our boat. We then also found a third humpback whale!

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    passengers watching whales in iceland in december
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    Merry Christmas! With a bit of a drizzle and consistent wind, we layered up and headed out into the bay. We soon got word that 2 humpback whales were in the area, so we headed over! It was the same pair that have been hanging around the islands for the last month or two. We were able to watch them for a while and they treated us to many close fluke dives!

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    hallgrimskirkja surrounded by the winter sun
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    We went out into the bay in strong winds and quite some rain. We came across a grey seal and a harbor seal the were chasing fish in the bay, and plenty of seabirds joined their feast. There were even some harbor porpoises and around 3 white-beaked dolphins further out. Sadly, no other cetacean were seen, so we issued complimentary tickets to all our guests.

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    hallgrimskirkja as seen from the sea
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    We went out in typical Icelandic winter weather; strong winds from SE, heavy clouds and some rain. Not too far out however, we saw the blows of 2 humpback whales that were traveling into the bay to feed. We were able to spend some time with them. At one point they passed by us really close, mere meters away. Despite the weather, it was a great tour!

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    Today was winter solstice, the shortest day of the year - and we spent it whale watching! We started our search around Lundey island, but soon heard from another boat that that there was life much closer to home! We sailed back towards Engey island where we found our resident pair of humpback whales; Banana and Radar, still feeding and keeping us on our toes.

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    humpback whales
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    The wind was blowing, it was raining and the visibility was not the best. We eventually did come across 2 harbour seals bottling at the surface close to the boat, and then we found 2 humpback whales swimming side by side. They were diving for almost exactly 4 minutes before coming back up to the surface, rewarding us with good sightings!

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    humpback whales
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    We sailed out in good conditions and mild winds. As we came around the corner of the island Viðey, we spotted 2 humpback whales! We spent some time with them, as they let us admire their beautiful flukes and how majestic they move through the waters. After a while, we said our fare wells before heading back home. What a beautiful in the bay!