Just the other day, I talked about the efficiency of the so-called blubber layer when it comes to keeping a whale warm while swimming in the cold waters of the North Atlantic. However, there's more to this fat layer than just its superb insulation attributes against freezing temperatures.
Have you ever wondered how whales manage to survive in these cold waters around Iceland (and even further north!), especially now as temperatures started to drop again near to freezing, fresh snow has fallen and is covering our beautiful Cheek Mountains – and winter will surely be knocking at our doors soon enough? BLUBBER! All marine mammals, not just whales, but also dolphins, seals, walruses, have a very special fat layer, the so-called blubber.
September started greatly in terms of whale sightings: Hungry humpback and minke whales are roaming the bay in search for more and more food! Most of the time, they have been feeding around our boats, completely undisturbed by our presence, but mainly focused on getting as many "bites" as possible.
If you travelled around Iceland during the summer months, you sure noticed all the sheep roaming around freely around the country. Each year, after lambing season finishes in spring, farmers let their sheep out of the stables and fields to roam freely over the highlands for the following months.
Humpback whales are known for many reasons, for being beautiful, for being one of the most studied species of whales and for their beautiful vocalizations! Whales and dolphins (and many other sea creatures) rely on sound to find their food, to know more about their surroundings, to find each other and to communicate.
We have a big family where we include our captains, guides and passengers. Our captains are mainly Icelandic but we have two women captains that come from Germany and France! Our guides like our passengers come from all over the world.
In the blink of an eye another month passed and as August is ending, we're excited about the autumn months ahead of us! While the last month has had its ups and downs in terms of weather, we still look back at many fantastic moments out at sea and sure made memories for a lifetime while around our beloved whales and dolphins! As September starts, we adjust our sailing schedule for both our favourite tours, the GG1 Whale Watching on our traditional oak boats as well as the GG2 Big Whale Safari on our modern RIB speed boats.
Up to date, we know fairly little about our oceans – even though they cover over 70 percent of Earth’s surface. In fact, more than 80 percent of the oceans have not been mapped, explored or even been seen by humans.
It may have already crossed your mind if a whale could eat a human. I am here to reassure you: that is something quite impossible to happen. Well, let's go into details! First, we have two big groups of whales, the baleen and the toothed whales.
