Tour at 20:30
We started the tour at Akurey to see the Puffins and there were lots to be seen. As we were leaving the island we noticed a strange moving shape on the waters surface which seemed out of place. Off we ran to get a better look in the binoculars and too our amazement we found ourselves looking at the first Basking Shark of the summer. The second largest fish in the world and we were only 10meters away from it. After a few minutes the shark submerged so we went looking for Whales. It was very difficult locating the Minke Whales tonight, we did see at least 2 but they were being very elusive. One surfaced 5 times which gave us a great look but once it went for a deep dive we were unable to locate it again. The Midnight Sun of this tour was breath taking, especially as it set behind Snæfellnes Peninsula.
Tour at 17:00
We headed straight out into Faxaflói Bay for this tour and went to visit the Puffins at home at the end of the tour. It was a very long time before we located the Minke Whales but we found them in the end and they were great. We seemed to have placed ourselves in the ultimate spot as we had at least 3 Minke Whales surfacing around us and about 10-20 meters from our boat. One surfaced so close that we were shocked and jumped back. Great Minkes!!
Tour at 14:00
We headed straight out to Faxaflói to search for the whales. After a short time we spotted a minke whale! It surfaced 300 meters away from us so we headed to that area. We saw it once more but spotted another minke whale. So in the beginning of the tour we saw many minke whales but they surfaced only once or twice. But we did not stop searching for other whales and after a while we found very nice minke whales surfacing only 10 meters both in front of the boat and in the back! We also saw harbour porpoises jumping out of the water! On the way back we stopped at Akurey and saw many puffins sitting on the water around the island. Very nice tour!
Tour at 13:00
Still very good visibility when we headed out in the afternoon and it wasn't long after a really nice visit to Akurey and the puffins that we met out first Minke whales. Some 3 individuals but they were a bit shy and kept trying to get away from us. We left them and further out got lucky when several Minkes (5-6) in a fish-rich area with many Gannets, Fulmars, Guillemots and other seabirds. Some really good moments when some of them surfaced out of the blue right next to us (5 metres!), however they still dived for a long time. Really nice to see some Harbour porpoises, jumping next to us and obviously enjoying themselves. You could even see them diving under water. A good tour!
Tour at 10:00
What an amazing tour. Perfect weather, mirror calm seas, a bit cloudy but no threat of rain and great visibility. Just 20 minutes ride out into Faxaflói Bay we encountered a very large pod of White-beaked Dolphins (10-15 individuals) travelling together and sometimes coming just a couple of meters from our boat. There was even a little calf with them. Then once we got to the main Minke area we found ourselves surrounded. Minke Whales everywhere (20+ individuals). Some were really close (one surfaced just 5 meters from our boat) some very far away. So many seabirds here too enjoying the bubbling shoals of Sandeels and Mackerel. Fantastic!!
Tour at 09:00
The water surface was flat like a mirror when we headed out of the harbour this morning and set sails for Akurey. The high tide allowed us to come so close that we could look almost each of the 12.000 puffins in the eye and look into their burrows. Heading out into the bay, we encountered our first Minke whale after only 5 minutes! So close to the shore!! Since this animal was a bit shy, we decided to head further out where the captain had already spotted several backs. And indeed: Minke whales all over the place! The water was "boiling" around us but it weren't Piranhas, there were big schools of sand eels and mackerels, scrambling away from the whales. Must have been more than 20 animals! On the way back, we encountered a pod of approximately 8 white-beaked dolphins. They were jumping, spiralling their slim bodies into the air. A fantastic tour!!
Seabirds seen on todays tours include; Gannets, Puffins, Guillemots, Razorbills, Manx Shearwaters, Gulls, Kittiwakes, Fulmars, Arctic Terns, Eider Ducks and Arctic Skuas.