Whale watching is a popular pastime in Iceland, and since Iceland is an island, we don't have to go far to see the whales. I joined a tour with Reykjavík Sailors, departing from Reykjavík harbour.
I have lived in Reykjavík my whole life, and this is the first time I have gone whale watching from Reykjavík harbour. Deep-sea
I have gone whale watching on my travels around my country, but I did not have to go that far, as there are awesome whale sightings in my backyard, so to speak.
Top photo: a humpback whale waving
With the captain of the boat and the tour guide
When I was little only on a couple of occasions there were sightings of whales just outside of Reykjavík, but they were so far away that we could barely see them from where we were standing on shore with binoculars.
Back then, there were no whale watching tours.
Times have changed for sure, and I couldn't believe how much fun there is to be had on Faxaflói bay just outside my city ;)
We sailed for 45 minutes in beautiful, sunny weather, and the Icelanders on board the whale-watching boat felt the breeze was warm; others opted for the warm overalls offered to the passengers. Do bring a hat and gloves just in case, as we are out on the open sea.
A humpback whale waving
Life jackets are also offered to passengers, and seasickness tablets are available if needed. If you prefer to stay inside, there are also plenty of heated indoor cabins with wifi and refreshments for sale.
The captain, Björn Stefánsson, and the marine engineer, Unnar Gylfason (the cute guys in my photo above), asked me in to see a video of a humpback whale breaching that Unnar had shot earlier that day.
I crossed my fingers that we would see the same sight, as it has been a dream of mine for years to see a humpback whale breaching (jumping).
We were in luck on the afternoon tour as we saw plenty of minke whales, dolphins, and humpback whales, and even a humpback whale breaching :)
It happened so suddenly that I didn't catch it on camera, but I got a clear mental image that I will cherish forever. I felt ecstatic - it was a truly magnificent sight!
Humpback whales are often called the most entertaining whales because they are very curious. You can see them swimming straight up to the boats as they seem to want to check us out as much as we want to check them out ;)
You can see in my video above how close they are to the whale watching boat.
A whale fluking
These huge creatures float and splash their fins like they are waving at us - it is really heartwarming watching them so close up. They sometimes make a move called spy-hopping, and you will see what I mean when you go whale-watching yourself.
Three other whale-watching boats were cruising in the best whale-watching areas, and we all watched these majestic sea creatures together in awe. Everybody is a friend here in Iceland, and the boat captains talked to each other on the radio and informed the others of whale sightings.
We saw fins waving at us, watched them blowing and fluking - that is when they wave their tail and dive.
The fluke is like a human fingerprint - every whale has a different fluke. Do try to take a photo of it to see how many different types of flukes there are
The fin of a humpback whale
The whales dive for about 6 minutes, and then you know that the "show" is over for the time being, so it is time to watch out for another whale doing acrobatics.
Characteristic of the humpback whales, apart from their fluke and huge pectoral fins (one-third of the length of the whole whale), are the lumps of tubercles on their head and flippers. Can you believe that inside the tubercles is one stiff hair - from the time when these giant creatures seemed to have had fur!
The marine guide on the watch will tell you where to look by using the hands of the clock, for example, 10 o'clock - 12 o'clock, etc., which was very useful and helped us spot the whales. It must be funny to watch the passengers on board the whale-watching boats rush to the areas the marine guide points them towards.
We were literally running as we were so excited; I felt like a little kid again :)
A whale we saw on the tour
Humpback whales are 16-18 metres long and weigh from ca 25 to 40 tonnes. They are preserved, so they no longer fear human beings. Now their main enemy is the killer whale, which is after their baby whale :(
Humpback whales are migrating whales and only visit Iceland in the summertime - here is their feeding ground, and here they come to fatten up. In the wintertime, the humpback whales swim to their mating and calving grounds in the Caribbean and don't eat at all; they live off the fat they have gathered up north. Fancy that!
We watched the whales play in the ocean for a long time, until the crew informed us it was time to grab the fishing rods and catch deep-sea fish for dinner.
The catch was mainly starfish
Reykjavík Sailors is the only whale-watching company that adds the extra touch of sea angling, which is why I chose them over other whale-watching tours. I had never tried sea-angling before and really wanted to give it a try.
While we were changing course, Unnar surprised us and told us to gather around him. He threw out a plough and brought in some sea creatures from the bottom of the ocean. This time around, the catch of the day was mainly starfish, which we got to examine.
After examining Unnar's catch, we got a fishing rod and tried our hand at sea-angling. On board the whale-watching boat are 20 deep-sea fishing rods, so 20 people can go fishing at the same time across 2 decks.
My husband caught this cod
My husband had only caught a fish once in his life, so he barely knew how to handle the fishing rod. The crew showed us how, and he quickly got the hang of it.
To his surprise, he caught a cod on the first try. The crew asked if he wanted them to cook it for dinner, which he gladly accepted.
The freshly caught fish was quickly transformed into fillets right there on the deck, where Unnar stood ready with his knife to gut them. Fish, for sure, doesn't get fresher than this.
Everybody was now busy catching fish - it was incredible how many fish we caught, some were even catching two fish at a time as there were 2 hooks on the line.
Fish fillets ready to be prepared
I also wanted to give it a go, even though I hadn't caught fish since I was a teenager. Back when I was younger, I was an avid trout angler, fishing in Lake Þingvallavatn, where I stayed for weeks on end in a summer cottage.
In my video below, you will see the deep-sea fishing on the lower deck.
The music playing on board the whale-watching boat was solely Icelandic, which created quite an ambience for us Icelanders who knew the songs, and I hope the other passengers enjoyed it as well.
You can see that almost everybody was wearing the overalls provided by Reykjavík sailors.
I went up to the upper deck to try out my luck, and in my second cast, I caught a small cod, but thought it was too small to keep, so we let it live and threw it back into the ocean.
Several people kept their fish alive even though they thought they were too small, since we were already catching enough fish for dinner for everybody.
The captain, Björn, helped me with the fish, so don't worry if you don't know how to fish; you will not be on your own. The crew at Reykjavík Sailors consists of experienced, trained fishermen and ocean guides, who will help you out.
Fishing is, after all, one of our most important industries, and Iceland's main export is fish and fish products.
The small fish I caught
See the man in the green jacket in my photo above? He was catching fish like there was no tomorrow, most often 2 at a time. It was great fun watching him and his children, who were thrilled as there was so much action :)
When we were about to wrap it up, he noticed that he couldn't reel in the line - it was way too heavy!
He had caught a big cod and had to get help from the captain and Unnar, the marine engineer, to reel it in.
I followed them down to the lower deck to photograph this huge cod being reeled in, but just as they were about to put it into a net, the huge cod managed to wiggle itself free and fell into the ocean again with a big splash, and only the smaller cod remained on the hook.
The cod was huge
You can see the difference in the size of these fish in my photo above. The cod, þorskur in Icelandic, is often called "sá guli" (the yellow one) due to its colour.
It can become huge, and one of the biggest cods caught by Iceland weighed 54 kilos!
Other marine fish you might catch include halibut, catfish, and haddock.
The crew had started preparing the fish we had caught straight from the ocean and getting dinner ready in the whale-watching boat's indoor cabin.
While dinner was being prepared, we looked out for more whales, and that is when I saw the humpback whale breaching!
Dinner was ready
As I told you earlier, then it was the highlight of this tour seeing a humpback whale breach, as I had seen so many magnificent photos, but never managed to see it with my own eyes.
So keep your eyes peeled on the sea; you never know what you might spot! Also, notice the seabirds around the whale-watching boat, you will see seagulls floating on the ocean, fulmars flying right by your face, and the adorable puffins flapping their wings like crazy (ever so cute) or sitting idly on the sea with their colourful beak.
I even spotted a seabird I have never seen before, the huge gannet - súla in Icelandic.
The Reykjavík sailors' flag
The fresh, pristine ocean air had made the passengers work up quite an appetite, and everybody complimented the chef for a delicious fish course prepared with the freshest ingredients available.
After dinner, we sailed back home to Reykjavík; some used the free Wi-Fi on board, but I opted to stay outside. I love the fresh sea air, and I wanted to keep my eyes open for possible whale sightings. What a wonderful day this had been :)
The views from the boat on Faxaflói bay are breathtaking; here you can see Reykjavík city, the islands, and the mountains, and you will see as far as Akranes town in the west.
Harpa concert hall in Reykjavík
My photo above is of our concert and conference hall, Harpa, by the harbour, where the whale-watching boat sailed in and out of the harbour.
The whale watching boat of Reykjavík Sailors leaves from Vesturbugt harbour downtown Reykjavík, just a little bit west of the old Reykjavík harbour. Right next to Vesturbugt harbour, you will find 3 very interesting museums, the Saga Museum, Víkin Maritime Museum, and Whales of Iceland, which is the largest whale exhibition in Europe - plus a myriad of restaurants and galleries.
Do make the most out of visiting this interesting area of Reykjavík, combined with a Whale Watching and Sea Angling tour.
Reykjavík Sailors
The whale-watching tour lasted 3 hours and 30 minutes. Our tour started at 5 pm sharp, so it is best to be at the location at least 10 minutes before departure.
I almost missed the boat as I had gone to the wrong harbour.
Pickup starts an hour before departure, but if you have rented a car, you will find free parking in front of the whale-watching boat.
Have a lovely time whale-watching, and I hope you get to see many whales on your tour :)
