Tuesday, 27 May 2014

Tour at 17:00

Report from Hafsúlan: The sea was so calm as we headed out in the after noon sunlight. We hadn't sailed for long when we spotted a couple of Harbour porpoises that were spread around the area, at least 10-15 individuals. We sailed for about an hour when we spotted a couple of dorsal fins, it was a pod of 4-6 White-beaked dolphins, and there were actually two pods in the area. The dolphins surfaced close to the boat so we got a beautiful look at them and after a while, we headed further out to try our luck in spotting something else. We had only sailed for about 15 minutes when we spotted another pod of 5 dolphins, and they were very friendly as they swam under the boat and we could see their whole body under the surface before the came up right next to the boat. After a while we spotted a Minke whale in the distance. The animal was quite calm but took long deep dives before it surfaced again. As we scanned through the area we could see at least 3-4 minke whales around us, surfacing in the perfectly calm ocean. On our way back we found the third pod of white-beaked dolphins which we managed to take a look at before it was time to head back.It was a great tour with 3 species of cetaceans in the beautiful evening weather!- Freydís Ósk

Tour at 13:00

Report from Hafsúlan: The sky had cleared up after the morning tour and we sailed out into a cloudy but rain-free bay in the afternoon. The clouds gave the sea a light grey colour - ideal for spotting whales, dolphins and porpoises. And we did! First we got a few very nice looks at some scattered Harbour Porpoises, and they continued to surface sporadically around us throughout the trip (in total at least 30-50 individuals). Up next was a pod of very friendly White-Beaked Dolphins (5-7). They surfaced very close to the boat and we even managed to follow their movements under the water surface. But soon it was time to move on - we had spotted our first Minke Whale only a little bit further and it looked like there was a lot going on in that area. Little did we know! We were soon surrounded by minke whales (at least 7 or 8 individuals) on all sides, some of them peacefully traveling in the distance, others rolling and surface-feeding right next to the boat. We got some amazing looks at pink bellies and ventral pleats and often didn't know which direction to check out because of all the animals around us. We spent a good hour amidst the action, also getting to see lots of different seabirds, before we had to head back. What an incredible trip!!

- Linda

Tour at 9:00

Report from Hafsúlan: It was cloudy and raindrops were falling down as we headed out this morning, but still the sea condition was quite good. We sailed for about an hour before we spotted a black back surfacing in front of us. We had to wait for quite some time and scan the ocean carefully, but we could see a lot of birds feeding around us. All of a sudden a Minke whale surfaced, and we could see there were at least 2-3 animals in the area. We could see them surfacing around us and moving quickly around, probably feeding. Some of them came very close to the boat so we got a beautiful view at them. We decided to sail a little bit further out after we spent a good amount of time in the area. When we got further out we could see more minke's in the distance along with some Harbour porpoises that we got a good look at, although they are quite small and quick. Before we headed back to the harbour we stopped by the area were we saw the first minke whales. We watched a minke surface for a couple of times before we had to head back.It was a good tour and the bay seemed to have a lot of food for these animals. - Freydís Ósk