Thursday, 23 February 2017

Text and Pictures by Megan Whittaker

Whale Watching 11:00

A blustery morning, chilly South-Easterly winds but the snow was nice to see, feeling that winter finally arrived to Akureyri.  It was a rather nice sail north past Hjalteyri and my favourite part of the fjord, Hörgárdalur. We were just south of Hrísey when passengers started to scream, DOLPHINS!! we turned the boat and searched more towards the south. We found them and saw that they were actually harbour porpoises, a very large pod of at least 30-40 individuals. They were traveling very fast and only splashes were mainly seen as they came up to breathe. Unfortunately, no larger cetaceans were seen so we offered our passengers complimentary tickets in the hope they would have better luck next time. 

Northern Lights 21:00

We were a little worried this evening as the wind was quite strong and very cloudy but due to the storm tomorrow, tonight would be our best chance and the forecast was showing that the skies might clear up later. Luckily the wind calmed down a little and it was a nice sail out. Snowing and the winds changed strength during the tour. A big gap in the sky showed the stars and more and more showed themselves which was nice, but alas no northern lights and we gave out complimentary tickets to our passengers so that they can try again in the next two years.