Whale Diary

10:00 -  Today we had a lot of fog all around Reykjavik, and at sea wasn't any different! However, the sea was amazing, and off we went to scan the bay! After a while of sailing, we started seeing many seabirds. We then spotted a minke whale on our right, very fast. But also a humpback whale breaching a couple of hundred meters ahead of us! It was not alone, there was another 2 humpbacks in the area, coming and going in different directions. We didn't even need to wait longer than a minute to see something coming up. Also, more minkes, about 4 of them, were in the area was well, and one even came extremely close to the front of the boat! It was amazing to see it! One of the humpbacks also came very close to our right at some point, giving us a jump scare because of the loud blow. Then, we headed to Reykjavik, but not before passing by Akurey to spot some puffins! They gave us a real show when we arrived, thousands of them flying around. We stick around with them a bit, before we headed home.

Crew: Captain Óðinn & Guide Milla, Captain Miquel & Guide Maja

12:00 -  On our midday tour, the seas were calm. We started by visiting Engey to check out some puffins, then sailed further out. We spotted a small pod of about 3–5 white-beaked dolphins, but they didn’t seem too interested in us, so we carried on. After that, we saw a minke whale and watched it for a bit, then another minke popped up nearby. Then we noticed a big flock of birds — and sure enough, there was a humpback whale feeding! It was even coming up upside down now and then, showing off its pectoral fins. So cool to see. There were actually two more humpbacks in the area, also feeding. We stayed there, watching them fluke and feed, until we ran out of time and had to head back to Reykjavík.

Crew: Captain Megan & Guide Maria

14:00 -  This afternoon, the fog had cleared up a little, and the sea remained very calm. We started off by passing one of the puffin breeding islands, watching as countless puffins flew around the boat. Then, we continued farther out into the bay, and it didn’t take long before we spotted the first dorsal fin — a minke whale swimming by! We watched as it dove a few times around the boat, and then we kept going a little farther. Soon, minke whales started to appear everywhere — we could count about 10–15 in one area! Next, we stopped for a humpback whale and watched it perform some beautiful fluke dives. As we were watching the humpback, we noticed a pod of white-beaked dolphins farther out in the distance and decided to take a closer look. It turned out to be a pod of about 10 individuals, four of them calves, clearly much smaller than the adults. We watched as they swam around our boat, and we could clearly hear their exhales all around us. Eventually, we decided to leave them be and continued on to find another humpback whale. We watched as this one also dove in the area, and we even spotted a second humpback farther out in the distance. Even more minke whales popped up around us, a few of them coming very close to the boat. What a lovely afternoon with so many close encounters!

Crew: Captain Óðinn & Guide Milla, Captain Miquel & Guide Maja

16:00 -  We started off by cruising past one of the puffin breeding islands, where tons of puffins were flying all around the boat — such a fun sight to start the trip! We kept heading farther out into the bay, and it didn’t take long before we spotted our first dorsal fin — a minke whale swimming by! We watched it dive a few times around the boat before continuing on. Not long after, we spotted a pod of white-beaked dolphins, scattered around the area — probably about 15 of them in total! Then things really picked up — we spotted a humpback whale lunge feeding in the distance. As we got closer, the water was just teeming with life: krill and fish everywhere, hundreds of birds flying around, a few minke whales, and three humpbacks all lunge feeding together! It was absolutely incredible. We stayed as long as we could, soaking it all in, but eventually it was time to head back to the harbour.

Crew: Captain Megan & Guide Maria

20:00 -  What an evening. The sky was overcast and visibility obscured by dense sulphuric smog, but the sea was flat calm like a mirror. Perfect conditions for spotting. We stopped at Akurey where a lot of very relaxed puffins were sitting on the water, allowing us to get fairly close in the boat. Then we headed out into the Bay. After a period of time driving, we spotted a minke whale and then another. We kept driving and began to see more and more birds including some big feeding frenzies, and many minke whales in the surrounding area. We were excited to see some big splashes and realised it was jumping white beaked dolphins, flinging themselves several feet clear of the water over and over again. Quite a show. As we watched the dolphins swim under and around our boat, we also saw a humpback fluke as it went for a dive. We began searching for the humpback and spotted more dolphins. It took us a minute but we realised the dolphins were playing with a humpback! The humpback rolled slowly around on the surface and eventually came to rest quite close to the boat. We then heard an enormous splash - a humpback whale had breached not too far from us. We left the resting humpback and drove towards the breaching whale, which breached about 10 times in a row. It then began repeatedly slapping its pectoral fin in the water. The second humpback now came over to join it and we watched them diving together. As we turned to return to the harbour, we saw jumping dolphins again. A very special night out in the Bay.

Crew: Captain Eggert & Guide Rachel