June 26: What a Whale of a Day!
What a whale of a day! After surviving torrential rain and fierce winds for two days I decided to celebrate today’s warm and sunny weather by taking a two-hour whale watching tour in the Eyjafjordur off of the city of Dalvik. What a once in a lifetime experience – 12 humpback whales and one Minke whale surfaced, spouted, flipped their tails, and sang songs for me and the rest of my small tour group before I headed north and west to the small town of Blonduos.
A tip from a local biker two nights ago inspired me to make reservations today with the Arctic Sea Tour Company an hour and a half west along the coastline and up the peninsula from my lodging in Laugar last night. What a treat it was this morning to ride through the snow-capped mountains and along the ocean with the sun on my back and almost no wind. Ponies pranced in their pastures, sheep grazed alongside the road, and wildflowers blew in the wind as I took time to enjoy the scenery.
Switching out my biking gear for a survival suit and a lifejacket, I boarded the Arctic Sea Tour Speedboat and headed into the fjord. Apparently, this area is one of the best in the world for whale watching because there is a volcanic fissure in the bottom of the ocean that creates heat and attracts the zooplankton and krill that the whales like to eat.
The whales today must have been hungry because there were so many of them! It is hard to capture in a picture how magnificent these creatures are. Despite their enormous size, the Minke Whale and 12 Humpback whales we saw gracefully flipped, dove, and circled in the water right next to the boat, spouting out water from their blow holes and making a variety of intriguing sounds.
My favorite moment was when a humpback whale came within just a few feet of where I was standing at the front of the boat and crested the water right in front of me. I could see the white of his fins right below the surface almost touching the boat right before he rose out of the water. I was terrified and elated at the same time, with pictures of the movie “Jaws” flashing in my head while I shrieked with joy.
Having had my fill of excitement, I took a few minutes after the tour to enjoy my picnic lunch on a table next to the tour office facing the water and the Trollaskagh Mountains. It was so gratifying to gaze out at the mountains and the fjord, watching fishing boats going back and forth and seagulls swooping around me.
From Dalvik I continued along the edge of the peninsula all the way around the north and west side as I headed to Blonduduos. It was quite thrilling to go through several mountain tunnels, two of which were one car width wide but had traffic going in both directions. I think I missed the tutorial on how to properly take turns because I seem to have upset one car coming the other direction.
The staff of the small guesthouse I am staying in tonight have been very friendly and helpful, serving me a delicious salmon dinner, helping me carry my bags to my room, and setting me up with an extra heater when the one in the room did not work. What a great day on the road!
