A GIANT START - BLUE WHALE ON FIRST TOUR
All of us were counting down to today that Faldur would leave the harbour for the first time of the season in search for whales.
But none of us would ever have expected what an unforgettable experience each of us would bring home after the season’s first tour.
In fact, the day didn’t start very promising: snowfall, a cloudy sky and fog were all over Húsavík and the bay. Hence, I got a text message of a friend telling me to not worry, but that “in two hours I’ll see the blue sky, have great visibility and a big whale!”
Two hours later – we literally had just left the harbour – the clouds were gone from one minute to the other, the sun was shining onto us and the Cheek Mountains on the other side of the bay welcomed us in their winter-beauty.
But then – I couldn’t believe what I saw – wasn’t there something dark on the surface – now disappearing in the waves? Was that a blow now? Was that real? Did I just see a whale surfacing a couple of hundreds meter away?
It turned out to be a whale – and not only a big surprise to everyone, but also a very big whale!
The passengers on board couldn’t believe what they were hearing when I – excited as I was – shouted out a direction to look at. And yes: it was real! Blow after blow appeared in the air. Extremely huge blows! Also passengers were shouting for joy and pointing the way we had to go!
Just a few minutes later it was clear: We were approaching the largest animal on earth: a gentle blue whale showed off from its best side.
For the next hour everyone was thrilled and waiting for the blue whale to show up again and again. It was circling in that area, coming up very close to our boat Faldur sometimes showing us its long back, greeting us with its tall blow or just drifting on the surface for a little while – apparently relaxing. And not only that – every now and then it even raised its beautiful tail up high out of the water just in front of us when leaving for another dive. This whale got to hear a lot of Oooh’s and Aaaah’s! One thing is for sure: It definitely deserved it!
After a little more than an hour we finally left the huge mammal behind to start our way back to Húsavík whilst enjoying some hot chocolate and Icelandic donut – but everyone’s thoughts were still with the amazing whale we just got to see!
Personally, I think the blue whale was the species none of us expected to encounter today as they usually don't arrive before May! Even bigger was the surprise and excitement among the people on our boat Faldur. This has been a fantastic start into the new season! It couldn't be any better...
- Sarah
The blue whale's back: In fact, only one third of the whale's entire body length is visible on the surface. Blue whales are the largest animals on earth: the largest indivual ever seen was about 33m in length!
Today's blue whale behaved rather calm and relaxed on the surface for some time, showing off from its best side!
Faldur returning to the harbour with a dozen of passengers that will bring home a very special and unexpected memory.
PHOTOS:
Sarah Arndt (Blue whales)
Úlfhildur Sigurðardóttir (Faldur returning)