Today we had a menu of options for activities. I chose to do the hike and Lisa the bike ride. It was a 30-minute bus ride from Ísafjörður to Valagil Waterfall, located in Súðavík. Yet another foggy day but warm enough to go without a jacket. While hiking, I chatted with the other travelers with interesting stories. One woman shared that she had hiked Kilimanjaro for her 70th birthday! She suggested that I do it sooner than that. Perhaps that will be what I will do for my 60th birthday. On our return to the ship, we stopped at a convenience store where we could purchase locally-made products. A highlighted item was chocolate by Sætt & Salt. Produced in Súðavík, the chocolate is paired with geothermally processed sea salt from Reykjanes.
It is not uncommon to see sheep roaming in the mountains. In the summer months, the farmers release their flock to graze. A community event ensues at the end of the summer to guide them back to the farm. This is much easier when the weather is poor as the sheep want to return home. If it feels too much like summer, they can be stubborn.
After the hike, we returned to the ship for the remainder of the day and into the evening, voyaging to Siglufjörður. Little did we all know that we were in for a whale of a good time when this Humpback put on a show for us.
Education is an important component of Lindblad Expeditions, and this guy was a perfect centerpiece for discussion. We learned from Certified Photo Instructor and Naturalist Kelly Coursey Gray that the fluke (tail) is like a fingerprint and is their identifier. She submitted a photograph of his fluke to Happywhale and discovered that science had not yet identified this whale. The mission of Happywhale is "to increase global understanding and caring for marine environments through creating high-quality conservation science and education."
Did you know that a Humpback whale is about the size of a bus? Their scientific name, Megaptera novaeangliae, means "big wing of New England" because European whalers first saw them off New England's coast. When they raise their nose out of the water, it is called "spyhopping". You can find this information, and more, in this National Geographic article.
The fluke is like a fingerprint
Breaching Humpback
