Yesterday we were not only lucky with the weather, but also whale-wise. In the afternoon two uncommon visitors found their way into the bay. These special guests we had around were fin whales!In the beginning it took some time to figure out what whales we were actually watching.
Every now and then we are visited by whale species which are not considered common in our bay. That happened this afternoon when two fin whales were encountered. This is the second biggest whale species after the blue whales - which means this is BIG news.
Every once in a while there are people on board celebrating their birthdays or are on honey moons, but the other day we experienced something very special: a man proposed to his girlfriend during a tour.
Even though Gentle Giants will keep on running whale watching tours until 15th October, and many whales can be found in the bay all year around, it is still a fact that the highest season is soon slowing down.
"The Clowns of the Ocean" they are called, the puffins which have almost become a symbol of Iceland. Between the middle of April and the middle of August we can enjoy the presence of these funny birds daily, during our tours.
Finally we are sailing again according to schedule. The forecast looks good for the coming days. We recommend booking in advance, as many people have waited for this...
It is important for us to get feedback. Through that we learn what we do good and what we can improve. Yesterday we recieved a message on Gentle Giants' Facebook page saying: "We would like to say THANK YOU for this wonderful morning on the 10th of August :) We did the tour at 9:45 and saw a huge group of 40-50 white beaked dolphins almost during the whole tour, a mink whale (but only in the distance) and two humpback whales very close on the boat and one of them was even playing with the dolphins! A wonderful unique moment together with this gentle giants <3".
Gentle Giants’ owner Stefán Guðmundsson is a fisherman with 40 years of experience in the bay. Beside the whale watching he owns a fishing company together with his family. They recently invested in a shrimp fishing boat called Árni á Eyri, built from alumnium in 1987. It arrived to its new home harbour Húsavík for the first time yesterday.
The only place in Iceland where you can cross the Arctic Circle is on Grímsey; a wee island ca 60 km NW of Húsavík. This place is not far away anymore. At least not in time, thanks to our RIBs which both can reach the thrilling speed of 52 knots.
Lately the whales in Skjálfandi Bay proofed once more how adorable these gentle marine mammals are.It was the second trip on Sylvia at 13:15. We went out into Skjálfandi Bay with a full boat.
