Husavik - where the whales are!

Husavik is called the whale-watching capital of Iceland for good reason - the harbour is packed with whale watching boats in different formats and sizes and the captain of our boat boasted a 95% success rate! Ours was a medium-sized boat and passengers were provided with warm jump suits. I didn't need to wear it as it was a relatively warm and sunny day and I have enough layers to keep me warm and mobile even though we spent all of the two and a half hours on deck. There were zodiacs that chased down the whales and got really close - a bit too aggressive and apparently was frowned upon. 

The captain was kept well-informed by other captains and apparently, they followed the birds. Where there were large groups of birds gathered, that tend to be where the whales were.  This is because the birds would be going after the scraps leftover from the whale's meal and they had insider's information!  

We saw some dolphins as we approached the spot where there were other whale-watching boats waiting, but we were not close enough when the dolphins came out of the water.  But it was exciting to see a pair swimming side by side - possibly a mom and tot thing as they were really close together.

I captured a number of whale dives from various angles.  At one point, the whale was so close part of the tail went outside the frame of my lens! It was a very productive morning and we truly considered ourselves lucky for the clear sunny morning especially just as we left Husavik after lunch, the fog started to roll in and we were glad we were not doing the cruise in the afternoon.  You win some, you lose some...

It's the first time I've gone on a whale-watching cruise (that actually saw whales) so it's a matter of learning on the job - watching out for the moment when the whale dives and catching the tail in the air. I learned quickly that was the most interesting part of the whale where photography is concerned - it's where the action is, otherwise it's one big black thing in the water...unless of course one gets really lucky and the entire whale comes out of the water!

Husavik - the whale-watching capital of Iceland

This is one of many whale-watching boats

The church in Husavik has beautiful windows looking out onto the harbour

A couple of neat buildings in Husavik

Beautiful mountains on the way out...

Dolphins (probably white-beaked dolphins) - the warm-up act

Two dolphins very close together - possibly "mom and tot"?

Other whale-watching boats were already waiting

So were the dolphins and the seabirds

Here comes the whale about to dive

My first whale tail!

The birds congregate where the whales are so they are ready for leftovers

A typical whale-watching zodiac

I love the waterfall from the whale tail!

This one was practically next to the boat - so close I can't fit it all into the frame!

Two whales side by side - one diving before the other

See how close the zodiacs get...

All gathered to wait for the performance...

Watch the whale hump as it prepared to dive

You just have to be in the right place when the whale dives...it helps to be on a part of the boat where you can easily access both sides of the boat.

Beautiful mountains on the way back to Husavik - we can see the fog just starting to roll in. It had been an amazing trip!

Iceland - the scenic road to the north

It was a day's drive from the Western Fjords to Akureyri, in north Iceland with many breaks in between.  But it was a scenic drive with interesting stops along the way.

Our first stop was the powerful waterfall at Kolugljufur Canyon, plunging into a deep, rugged gorge. We then visited the beautifully restored farm museum at Glambauer with its long houses in a wonderful setting with a mountain range as the backdrop. It was interesting to see the inside of the houses.  In addition to the turf houses, there were two timber houses from the 18th and 19th centuries on the grounds.

The most exciting part of the day was lunch at a lady's ranch, Flugumyri in Skagafjordur, where she raised Icelandic horses.  Anna, a single mom, raised a family and made a name for herself raising Icelandic champion horses. Her daughter rode the beautiful black and white stallion Stakkur and showed us the uniqueness of the Icelandic horse. Apparently the Icelandic horse has 5 gaits, walk, trot, canter, tölt and flying pace. Most horses only have the first three. It was fascinating to watch.

We continued our northward journey after lunch, reaching Akureyri, the northern capital in late afternoon. We spent a little time at the waterfront in Akureyri - there were lots of eiders and some arctic terns. I wish I had known that when I got off the bus with my wide angle...

We spent the night at the Hotel Laugar in a beautiful rural setting beside two streams teaming with bird life. We saw Arctic terns fishing in the river - it was not easy to shoot in the evening light but I did anyway - an unexpected find!

Thundering waterfall plunging into the deep gorge below at Kolugljufur Canyon

Bridge over the canyon

 

We were driving through farm country with some fairly big farms on the way. Below shows trumpet swans that seemed to have invaded the farms in Iceland. They were digging up the fields and in general making a nuisance of themselves.  We saw many similar "invasions" throughout our drive on the ring road.

 

Glacier along the way

We stopped near this modern church for a break

The old church at the farm museum in Glambauer

View of the mountains through a gravestone

  

The beautiful mountain backdrop for the turf houses

The turf houses look like regular houses from the front

Long and narrow inside

The beds are very short. Apparently the early Icelanders sleep sitting as the prone position was only for the dead.

The turf  houses from the back

 

Two timber houses from the 18th and 19th centuries on the property

The long houses echoed by the modern long houses on farms along the road. (below)

Beautiful Icelandic horses at the ranch

Going through the paces at the Flugumyri ranch in Skagafjordur

Finished with his performance, he was rewarded with some free time...what a beautiful setting

Akureyri, capital of the north with its art deco church on the hill

An impressive art centre

Family of eiders - it seemed that mom did all the work while dad just stood guard.  She was training the two kids in how to dive by showing them how.  They followed exactly what she did and did it again and again.  It was quite fun to watch.  See the little one frisking in the water below.

The lovely pond in front of the Hotel Lauger and the sports complex nearby

This female eider enjoying the golden hour on the pond - together with a black-headed gull and what I think is a graylag goose

Black-headed gull

Graylag goose

The Arctic tern is such a beauty in flight - but so fast it's hard to catch up!

Reaching for the prize...

And getting it!