The northern lights were out in full force as we left the harbour. Amazing dancing arches and loops all over the sky. It was just amazing. For a short time the intensity decreased but then they came back and allowed for more awesome pictures.
It was cold today, but we almost had no wind and the sea was flat and calm. We found 2 humpback whales near Lundey and were greeted with one of them breaching twice! After this great start we spend some time with them before we went for a little cruise around the islands. There we found a large group of 10+ grey- and harbour seals hunting together.
We were lucky to have a clear and dark sky as we went out. The northern lights were visible right as we left the harbour, so we got good opportunities for great pictures. For around an hour we enjoyed the spectacle until it started to fade away.
The sea was very calm as we sailed out and the sun was shining over Reykjavík. It only took about 5 minutes until we spotted a humpback whale! As we moved on, we found 2 more humpback whales! We also found some grey seals that would pop up from time to time and at least 2 harbour porpoises as we sailed back home! It was a marvellous afternoon at sea.
With clear skies and bright stars, we headed out with high hopes. The Kp index was 2/9, meaning the aurora oval should happen over Iceland.. and sure enough, we started seeing faint northern lights above the bay that just got brighter and brighter!
With a bit of Icelandic winter wind, we grabbed a hot chocolate and bundled up. Right as we were leaving the harbour, we spotted the blows of 2 humpback whales! They surfaced very close to the boat, and it was wonderful to see their bodies through the water. Along our route we also spotted 2 harbour porpoises before seeing another solitary humpback whale!
We had only just left the harbour when we saw a faint northern lights display. A long arch stretched across the sky, multiplying and even turning red. The skies were very clear, so we could see plenty of stars and soon the auroras picked up in intensity!
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!
We sailed under a clear sky with little to no clouds and a lot of stars. Even though we had no luck with the auroras, we had a beautiful evening. In the end, we of course offered complimentary tickets so our guest could try again another night.
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.