Looking for whales — An Elegant Sufficiency

Today we sailed into the Eyjafjörður Fjord in search of whales. Splendor had docked in Akureyri early this morning alongside our companion from Ísafjörður yesterday, Mein Schiff 3.

Though we were really pleased to be alongside and not have the bother of tendering ashore, when we saw the weather and the distance we needed to walk to the whale-watching ship, we wondered if tendering wouldn’t have been a better idea!

The young woman leading us to the jetty set off at such a pace, I struggled to keep up with her. By the time we reached the ship I was puffing!

My Hero had done a recce and found us a couple of seats up top though, so I didn’t feel the need to hurry. We’d wrapped up warm and weatherproof, thinking that these things are seldom anything but chilly.

The weather this morning was anything but kind. Though it wasn’t actually raining when we set off, it was trying very hard.

As we set off, the area further into of the fjord didn’t look any better either. But the young English marine biologist gave a good commentary and felt confident we’d see what we’d come for - two humpback whales have been seen in the fjord during the last couple of days and there are many other species here too.

She continued her commentary for nearly two hours, so we learned all about the habits of whales and other sea mammals. I spotted a seagull, which a friend reliably tells me isn’t a seagull but a fulmar.

But did we see any whales? Sadly not. In fact, we didn’t see anything but those birds. Disappointing, especially since we’d got wet and cold. Never mind, we exchanged our tickets for another free trip any time in the next two years. (You never know!!)

By way of consolation, we did a little detour by the hot waterfall, fed by a hot spring discovered when they constructed the road tunnel nearby. I had the thought that if the captain steered the boat right under that hot shower, we’d probably all have cheered! We are all cold and wet already.