The other day a pod of pilot whales surprised us in Skjálfandi Bay in the early morning. In difference to the sighting earlier this month the pod was this time swimming just north of Lundey (Puffin Island) and therefore all departures in the morning and early afternoon could reach this rarely seen whales.
Today (20th of August), our "GG1 Whale Watching" EVENING DEPARTURE at 8pm / 20:00 departs for the very last time of this year's season! Don't miss your chance of watching majestic whales whilst admiring a marvellous sunset from our beautiful oak boat "Sylvía" out in Skjálfandi Bay! So far, today’s tours have had a great success with up to five humpback whales swimming in the same area.
Yesterday (14.8.16) in the early evening yet another surprise awaited us out in the bay. Not being sighted since April, a pod of at least 15 killer whales (orcas) was spending some time in the outer part of Skjálfandi Bay not far from Flatey Island.
Annually puffins arrive all over Iceland – about 70% of the Atlantic Puffin can be observed around the country during summer. They can be seen along the coastline or – as here in Skjálfandi Bay – on islands.
Húsavík – or moreover Skjálfandi Bay- is one out of a few places around the world where one might be lucky to observe a giant blue whale on a whale watching trip. Numerous blue whales pass our bay on their migration north to their feeding grounds and are admired by our passengers as the largest animal on earth.
"We were sailing looking for the lovely humpbacks when we spotted splashes in the distance. Probably some dolphins we thought. When we saw those amazing black rounded heads showing up on the surface we couldn’t believe how lucky we were! Dolphins yes but not the usual white beaked, those were the heads of pilot whales!!In the beginning they were shy, we could see 4 or 5 surfacing, but after a few minutes the rest of the pod showed up and it was huge! When I say huge it’s more than 50 pilot whales searching for mackerels near Flatey (an island out in Skjálfandi Bay).
Despite being a fishing nation there are very few places where you can get fresh fish in Iceland. Most of it goes directly to the fishing factories and after being processed it is exported where its world famous quality is very appreciated.
“Admittedly, our trip with Gentle Giants was awesome because of the dozens – DOZENS – of Humpback and Minke whales we saw on our tour. At one point, we were literally smack dab in a pod of them, and it got to the point that there wasn't a reason to take a photo if there would ONLY be 1 whale in the shot.
The blue whale, which had been seen several days throughout July, visited us once again yesterday. However, this time it didn’t come alone, but was accompanied by another, even larger individual! The two of them were seen on several “GG2 Big Whale Safari and Puffins” -tours throughout the day.
Antonio Ruiz is a Spanish travel blogger, who has joined us on a “GG2 Big Whale Safari and Puffins” tour on one of our RIB speed boats earlier this month. On the tour Antonio got to admire a lovely humpback whale, which - just as many other individuals - spends the summer time in Skjálfandi Bay to feed.
