Whale Watching in Iceland

Soon it was time to board our boat. It was a decent size boat and can hold 130 passengers but it didn't feel like there were that many people. However, most of the seating was taken so maybe there were at least 100 people on the boat? There was an area you could sit outside on the top and two levels inside where you could sit. We chose the middle level right above where it says "WHALE WATCHING" on the boat. There were some snacks and drinks that you could purchase but since we just ate lunch and brought our own, we had no need to purchase anything on the boat. We left the harbor and it took about 45 minutes to get to the spot where the whales were feeding. It was quite amazing!

Our boat Andrea and some little sailors.

The kids are all suited up and ready to go!

We saw some sort of dolphin or smaller whale off in the distance (no photos) and a few humpback whales who were pretty close to the boat. We also saw lots of birds which looked like a seagull but our guide told us it was something else that I can't remember. We also saw a lot of puffins but they are small and fast so they were hard to catch on camera. Finally, we saw a sort of albatross bird as well which I can't remember the name of it.

The top photo is of a nicely shaped volcano that the sailors use for navigating. It has a distinct cone shape to it. The bottom photo is one of our first sightings of whales! First there is the spray from the blow hole. 

Then there is the hump of the whale as they make their dive. Sometimes you get a tale (fluke) and this particular whale had some fishing nets tangled up but it didn't seem to bother him. 

There were a lot of birds as they like the spots where the whales feed too. Can you spot the puffin? 

Here is a closer look at the puffin!

Another shot of a puffin!

The large albatross bird.

It was a great day and I think we all napped a little on the ride back to the harbor. The kids really enjoyed the boat tour but Linnea was too cold outside so I stayed inside most of the time while the boys enjoyed the brisk air outside. We ended the day with pizza for Linnea and some greek/turkish kabobs and falafel for the rest of us. It wasn't great food but it was easy to get and we were hungry. Tomorrow we go on the Golden Circle Tour!