Whale Diary

10:00 - The sun finally made its welcome appearance after some stormy days - perfect timing for some whale-watching! We sailed out into a perfectly calm Faxaflói bay, and were greeted by thousands of puffins flying around Akurey. After the puffins, we continued our journey to check out some hotspot areas for the marine mammals, and we were lucky to find a large pod of 20 white-beaked dolphins swimming all around us and sometimes jumping out of the water. We heard news of a Humpback Whale, and were very happy to find it was still there when we got to the area. The humpback was feeding actively, throwing his peduncle out of the water and eventually even breaching! The breaches just wouldn't stop - he probably lept out of the water 5 times! We felt very thankful for having witnessed the power of this gigantic whale from quite close, and I think this is an experience none of us (crew included) will soon forget. Thank you whales!

Crew: Captain Bohdan and Guide Mariana, Captain Pedro and Guide Eline

12:00 - What an incredible morning of whale watching!! The sun was out for a fantastic day, and 25 minutes out, not far from Akranes, we saw a beautiful Humpback Whale! It was very active, swimming in circles, feeding, and also rolling as it fed. It showed the fluke several times and went under the boat also many times. We were the only boat in the place so it was magical. We kept going after some time with the whale, and we found 3 different pods of white beaked dolphins, totalling around 20 animals. They rode our wake, and delighted everybody. As we were coming back, we saw the fast dorsal fin of a Minke Whale, and we finished the tour to Akurey island where people learnt about the adorable puffins.

Crew: Captain Gunni & Guide Rodrigo - Captain Miquel and Guide Olivia

14:00 - Today's weather was perfect for whale watching, with clear skies, almost no wind, and flat seas creating ideal conditions. We set off from the harbor with high hopes for an exciting day. Our first stop was at Akurey, where we enjoyed watching some charming puffins. Their colorful beaks and lively antics were a delightful start to our adventure. As we sailed further out, we were thrilled to encounter a pod of 10-15 white-beaked dolphins. These playful creatures came right up to our boat, delighting everyone on board with their energetic jumps and curious behavior. Continuing our journey, we spotted a Humpback Whale. It surfaced regularly and treated us to a series of short dives, allowing us to observe its majestic presence up close. We pressed on and found another pod of 5-7 white-beaked dolphins. Like the earlier group, these dolphins were incredibly playful and provided a fantastic show as they interacted with our boat. With smiles all around, we headed back to the harbor, reflecting on the wonderful marine life we had encountered. Today's tour was filled with unforgettable moments and the perfect weather made it even more special.

Crew: Captain Bohdan & Guide Mariana, Captain Pedro & Guide Eline

16:00 - For this afternoon's tour we planned to go to the same areas where we had found cetaceans in the morning and at noon. We sailed deep into the bay, and we found several minke whales as we sailed, a total of 7. The passengers found them very beautiful and sleek, and were delighted to find so many. Unfortunately we couldnt find any humpback whales, but no one was dispirited, because while we were searching for the great whales, we found a large group of white beaked dolphins, around 20, and they were extremely active, jumping and coming very close to the boat. We finished with a visit to the puffins in Akurey which looked really nice in the golden light of the early evening.

Crew: Captain Gunni & Guide Rodrigo

20:00 - We had an amazing sunset on our last tour of the day! We sailed out into the bay on flat, calm seas and soon found a large pod of around 30 white-beaked dolphins. They were very energetic and quite curious of our boat. They soon swam up to us and were bow riding at the front and surfing our wake at the back! At one point one of the dolphins was continuously jumping as well! We followed these dolphins for a while before moving on to search for something else. We headed to an area where we saw lots of birds and here found a Minke Whale. Sometimes minkes can be tricky to follow but this one was very calm at the surface and we were able to see it multiple times. We then moved on to another group of birds and found another minke! Again, this individual surfaced very close to us and we were all able to get good photos with the sea so calm. We then had to start heading back in towards the harbour but on our way back we saw 3 mire dolphins and another minke!

Crew: Captain Pedro & Guide Emily