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Category: whale diaries

  • Best Whale Watching Iceland – Orcas and Sperm Whales on March 4, 2020

    Best Whale Watching Iceland – Orcas and Sperm Whales on March 4, 2020

    Best Whale Watching Iceland

    Today we had one of these special whale moments at sea which we definitely will not forget. It was a beautiful winter day with a lot of sunshine and the view from the land was already breathtaking. After everybody got one of our warm overalls, we left the harbor and sailed in the direction where we observed the whales already in the last couple of days. The whole peninsula was covered in snow and provided beautiful photo opportunities from our boat Íris.

    First Highlight of our Winter Whale Watching Tour – Dolphins

    It took not long until we found a group of white-beaked dolphins. They swam all around the boat and were easy to observe. It is always fun to watch them but after 10 minutes we continued our ride to the end of the peninsula.

    Orcas were the Second Highlight

    After searching for a little while, we also found the mammals Snaefellsnes is famous for – orcas, also called killer whales. Snaefellsnes is the only place in Iceland where orcas are regularly seen on whale watching trips. It was such a unique experience to watch these black and white beauties with their large dorsal fins. The orcas were spread around and we saw them all around the boat. Everybody had good chances to photograph them and after a good time with them, we continued to the deeper waters of the fjord.

    Best Whale Watching Iceland with the Third Highlight – Sperm Whales

    There we found the third highlight of our tour today and had a look at the largest of the toothed whales – sperm whales. It was not difficult to find them since we saw their large blows already from the very far distance. We had a wonderful time with a sperm whale right next to our boat. He decided to come very close and just relaxed for many minutes on the water surface. After a long time with this sperm whale, he raised his fluke for a deep dive. But there was more to see and we had at least 4 more sperm whales around the boat. There was even some interaction between 2 sperm whales right next to the boat when one whale touched another whale. We enjoyed some more flukes and then it was time to turn back. On the way back to the harbor, we observed more orcas, saw another sperm whale and took some extra time with these whales before we finally went back to land. It was a truly magnificent tour and everybody on board had a big smile on the face.

    So in case, you will read in a guide book that whale watching in Iceland is only worth in summer please definitely have this report in mind. It might be the case for other regions in Iceland but definitely not for Snaefellsnes where Láki Tours operates wonderful winter whale trips. For more than 2 weeks, we’ve had a 100% success rate with ORCAS every day that the weather allowed us to go to sea. We really hope this will continue.

    Learn more about our whale watching tour from Ólafsvik.
    Get inspired about the best things to do in Snaefellsnes.

     

    Photos by Christina Degener & Karl O’Neill

  • Whale Watching Iceland Winter 2020

    Whale Watching Iceland Winter 2020

    Iceland Whale Watching Winter 2020Whale Watching Iceland Winter 2020

    When looking for the best season for whale watching in Iceland you will most probably find the information that summer is the best time. With the warmer temperatures, the long daylight, and the calmer winds this information is definitely correct. However, it does not automatically mean that whale watching in winter is not recommended. Not all areas in Iceland are suitable for winter whale watching so we recommend choosing your whale watching location wisely.

    Snaefellsnes Whale Watching in Winter

    For us in Snaefellsnes, winter is definitely a busy season for whale watching and travelers from all around the world join our tours from Grundarfjördur or Olafsvik. For many people, it is a dream to see orcas in the wild nature. Chances to see these amazing mammals around Snaefellsnes are usually very good in winter. Around Snaefellsnes is the orca’s winter feeding ground and therefore we see these animals regularly on our tours.

    Snaefellsnes Whale Watching February 24, 2020

    The pictures in this article are from our winter whale watching trips on February 24, 2020. We were super lucky on both of our tours with close encounters not only of orcas but also sperm whales. This included a killer whale cruising upside down beside the boat and slapping his tail on the surface. This was a truly magnificent experience.

    Increase your Chances to see Whales

    When writing about Iceland whale watching in winter we also have to mention the risk of a canceled tour. The weather in Iceland is unpredictable and especially in winter, there are days with strong winds and unfavorable weather conditions where it is not safe to go out at sea. In order to increase your chances for a successful whale watching tour we highly recommend staying at least one night in Snaefellsnes. If a tour gets canceled you would have the chance to reschedule the next day. On top of that, Snaefellsnes also has so much to offer and there is so much to do and explore. We recommend reading our blog about the best things to do in Snaefellsnes. Below is a photo of the famous orca sculpture in Grundarfjordur, a nice photo motif when visiting this area of Iceland.

    Whale Watching Iceland Winter
  • Snaefellsnes Whale Watching February 22, 2020

    Snaefellsnes Whale Watching February 22, 2020

    Snaefellsnes Whale Waching February 22, 2020

    Today we had another great day with the orcas on our whale watching tour from Snaefellsnes. This time they came very close to the boat so no special camera was needed to take great photos. Especially the long dorsal fins of the males were pretty impressive.

    Explore Snaefellsnes in February

    Snaefellsnes has so much to offer. It is worth to visit not only because of the amazing orcas that feed in this area of Iceland. When joining our Snaefellsnes whale watching in February, we highly recommend to stay at least one night on the peninsula. Interesting places to visit are for example the impressive cliffs in Arnarstapi, the black church in Budir, and Kirkjufell mountain with the Kirkjufellsfoss waterfall. For planning a wonderful time in West Iceland, we also recommend reading our blog about interesting things to do in Snaefellsnes Peninsula.

    For more orca photos from our tours in February, we recommend visiting our Facebook page. We also regularly upload photos on Instagram.

  • Iceland Orca Watching February 18, 2020

    Iceland Orca Watching February 18, 2020

    Iceland Orca Watching February 18, 2020

    Today we found orcas at the very end of the Snaefellsnes Peninsula. It was a long boat ride from Grundarfjordur but finally our patience was rewarded with beautiful killer whales. Our guide Karl took this wonderful video today.

  • White Beaked Dolphins Iceland – Pictures from October 6, 2019

    White Beaked Dolphins Iceland – Pictures from October 6, 2019

    The weather is not being so kind to us at the moment with a lot of strong wind days. But today we got back out into the fjord and there are still many groups of white beaked dolphins out there. We saw a lot of different groups, including some with very small calves.

  • Northern Lights in Snaefellsnes – Aurora over Kirkjufell – September 27, 2019

    Northern Lights in Snaefellsnes – Aurora over Kirkjufell – September 27, 2019

    Northern Lights in Snaefellsnes

    Unfortunately strong wind has kept us off the water for the last two days. Luckily, there is plenty to explore and do in Snaefellsnes. So while we are sad not to be with the whales at the moment, we do not get bored. The Northern Lights were very strong last night here in Iceland with a solar storm causing amazingly beautiful Northern Lights in Snaefellsnes Peninsula. Therefore, some of our crew went out to photograph them. The solar storm is predicted to continue tonight and the cloud forecast is also good in our region. So if you are in Iceland at the moment, make sure you wrap up and look outside tonight.

    Magic Lights over Kirkjufell

    We love our neighboring mountain Kirkjufell. Last night, the magic Aurora was dancing around it and showed us an impressive light show.

    Aurora in Iceland

    if you are coming to Iceland for watching the Northern Lights, the following websites might be very helpful for you.

    Snaefellsnes is a great area to watch the Northern Lights. This region is far away from larger cities and light pollution is little to none. Snaefellsnes also has a unique micro climate and cloud coverage can be very different on the North and the South side of the peninsula. This increases your chances of seeing the Northern Lights since clear skies are essential to see them.

    To overnight in Snaefellsnes, we recommend our small Grundarfjordur Bed and Breakfast, a comfortable guesthouse very close to the famous Mt Kirkjufell.

     

    Photos: Judith Scott

    • Kirkjufell Iceland
    • Kirkjufell Snaefellsnes
    • Kirkjufell Northern Lights
    • Northern Lights Kirkjufell
    • Kirkjufell Grundarfjordur
    • Kirkjufell Iceland Snaefellsnes
  • Snaefellsnes Whale Watching September 26, 2019

    Snaefellsnes Whale Watching September 26, 2019

    Snaefellsnes Whale Watching September 26, 2019

    We had another successful trip today in Breiðafjörður. We found a humpback whale slowly travelling in the fjord, which lifted its tail a number of times. But the highlight was a group of white-beaked dolphins. That group that included young animals that were very active, jumping over and over again. The groups of dolphins with calves don’t usually approach the boat much, but these youngsters were leaping repeatedly not far from us.

    [mk_gallery images=”4827,4830,4833,4836,4839,4842,4845,4848″ style=”thumb” item_id=”1536950541-5b9c010d3e6de”]

     

  • Snaefellsnes Whale Watching in September – Report from Sept 23

    Snaefellsnes Whale Watching in September – Report from Sept 23

    Snaefellsnes Whale Watching in September

    The last couple of days here in Snaefellsnes were all about dolphins. While the larger whales are currently not so present, those little mammals are very active and fun to watch. Here is a great video from our tour guide Karl from September 23

     

  • Dolphins in Iceland – Great Sightings on September 17

    Dolphins in Iceland – Great Sightings on September 17

    White-Beaked Dolphins in Iceland

    The white-beaked dolphin is the most common dolphin being spotted on whale watching trips around Iceland. We see them at all our whale watching locations both in winter and also in summer. Those dolphins are 2 to 3 meters long and weight 180 to 350 kg. White-beaked dolphins are very social and they generally live and travel in groups.

    Dolphins in Iceland

    On September 17, we spent time with a number of groups of white-beaked dolphins in sunny conditions, with the stunning mountains of Snæfellsnes behind as a backdrop. Some came over to ride the bow of the boat so we could see them through the water. The first group consisted of mothers with calves and although they don’t come close to the boat usually, because of the young ones, we observed them from a respectful distance and saw the calves doing a few breaches out of the water. How cute? Our tour guide Judith took those amazing photos.

    [mk_gallery images=”4785,4791,4788,4794,4797,4800″ style=”thumb” item_id=”1536950541-5b9c010d3e6de”]

    Dolphins in Iceland – Breeding

    These dolphins primarily mate during the summer months. Since the gestation period is 11 months to a year, breeding season takes place throughout the summer months, May through September.  This is quite different to the baleen whales where breeding and birthing takes place in the warmer waters.

  • Holmavik – the Place to be for Iceland Whale Watching in September

    Holmavik – the Place to be for Iceland Whale Watching in September

    Wonderful Whale Sightings in Holmavik

    Holmavik is clearly proofing these days that it is the perfect place in Iceland for whale watching in September. The first week of September was amazing with many humpback whales in the bay. With so many whales around and so few passengers here in this remote part of Iceland, the tours feel very close to nature.

    Iceland Whale Watching in September – Come to Holmavik

    There is plenty of food in the bay at the moment with numerous humpbacks deep-feeding on herring.  Watching the social dynamics of humpback whale individuals is fascinating, with different combinations of individuals together each day. In the last couple of days, we have had up to seven whales in a group, but each day the groups alter members. 

    Humpback whales do not live in family groups and are generally solitary, but if there is plenty of food around they will form associations with each-other and are certainly not anti-social animals. But how the dynamics of these groups work we really don’t know. They will work together to hunt food, but how decisions are made and who is in charge in these ever fluctuating groupings, we still don’t fully understand.

    Photos from our Tours in Holmavik in the first week of September

    All photos are taken by our tour guide Judith. Look how close the humpback whales sometimes come to the boat! If you want to join our whale watching tour from Holmavik, you have to hurry. This tour is only available until September 15.

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