Iceland > Whale Safari at Sea

We have breakfast in our own apartment. We bought some bread, cheese, and orange juice at the supermarket. Together with a cup of tea, it was a fine start to the day. At half past eight, we walk to the harbor for the whale safari. We board the boat Náttfari, a former fishing vessel. Now there are benches on board. We have to wear face masks on board. This is mandatory according to Icelandic law because social distancing cannot be maintained, Laugey, the guide on board, explains. We also receive waterproof and windproof suits. Although the weather is fine today, it can be chilly at sea, Laugey warns. Shortly after, we leave the harbor. There are just over sixty people on board. At first glance, this seems like a lot, but there is quite a bit of room to move around. Laugey indicates when whales are spotted. When she says twelve o'clock, it’s straight ahead of the boat. Three o'clock means to the right, and nine o'clock means to the left of the boat. After about half an hour of sailing, the skipper spots a whale. The water spout shows where the animal is located. It turns out not to be just one whale, but two humpbacks swimming together. They occasionally come to the surface. It is an incredibly beautiful sight to see these colossal animals up close. After a few minutes above water, the whales dive back down for food. When diving, their tails emerge from the sea surface. Usually, a whale stays underwater for six to seven minutes before surfacing for air. However, a whale can remain underwater for up to forty minutes.

Iceland - A humpback whale just dives under

Fortunately for us, the whales soon resurface a few hundred meters away. We see the whales return several times. Whales come to Iceland in the summer for the nutrient-rich waters. After summer, they swim back to the Caribbean to mate in warmer waters. We look for another spot to give other boats a chance to see the whales up close as well, Laugey explains. Unfortunately, we have less luck here. We cross the bay but see no more whales or dolphins in the water. However, a few puffins fly past. Puffins mainly live at sea but breed on land. Most puffins come to Iceland for this purpose. Around noon, the fishing boat docks again in the harbor of Húsavík. We disembark, richer from a fantastic experience. Back at our apartment, we have something to eat before driving back to Mývatn. It is sunny in Húsavík, but a dark cloud hangs above the mountains. Could it possibly rain again in Mývatn? The low tire pressure warning light comes on. Two days ago, the light came on as well, and we pumped air into the tire then. It seems the tire is slowly losing air. As we approach the lake, the first drops fall on the windshield. The shower is much less intense than yesterday. With the umbrella close at hand, we enter the Dimmuborgir nature reserve. Here stand meter-high rugged lava rock formations. Some people believe that trolls used to live in this lava labyrinth. We look at it more realistically and follow the red markers between the rocks.

Iceland - The Eurasian and American tectonic plates are slowly drifting apart

The route passes the Gatklettur, a large hole in the rocks, and the church, a cave shaped like a church. It spits rain occasionally, but there are long dry spells too. The view from the lookout over Lake Mývatn is much more beautiful today than yesterday. Yesterday we were here in pouring rain. A few kilometers further lies Grjótagjá, a small lava cave with a thermal hot spring. Until the seventies, people could swim in the water. After a series of underground eruptions, the water temperature rose above sixty degrees Celsius. Bathing was no longer possible. Nowadays, the temperature has dropped below fifty degrees, but it is still too warm for comfortable swimming. The water has a special blue color. Above the lake runs the fault line of the Eurasian and American tectonic plates. The fault is about two meters wide. Here you can clearly see that the plates are moving apart. Fifteen years ago, I could still stand on the fault for a photo. Finally, we drive back once more to Hverir, the geothermal area where we also went yesterday. Now that it is dry, we walk again past the various bubbling mud pools. It remains a bizarre phenomenon. At the end of the afternoon, we return to Húsavík. At the supermarket, we shop for breakfast and lunch for tomorrow. Next to the supermarket is a garage. We explain to the young man that we have a soft tire. He listens and says they are closed. Tomorrow morning at eight o'clock, we can come back. There is no other option but to wait. We end the day at the restaurant Gamli Baukur by the harbor. With a last stroll through Húsavík, we say farewell to the town.