Steve the minke whale

We watched whales today.  I didn't take many photos because I was scared of dropping my phone overboard.  The extra photo shows the sea.

We stood at the prow of the boat and watched a humpback whale swimming in front of us, close enough to see its blowhole and hear it as it snorted out the water.  Amazing.

We also saw dolphins, a porpoise, gulls, cormorants and puffins.  It was a great trip.

Whale hunting is controversial in Iceland.  Traditionally, they'd eat whale meat from dead beached whales, but they wouldn't hunt them.  The Norwegians introduced whaling to Iceland, I believe, and other countries, such as Britain, got in on the act.  Only Iceland, Norway and Japan hunt whales now, I believe.

According to recent surveys, 1.7–4% of Icelanders eat whale meat regularly; tourists create the demand for the rest.  Many Icelanders oppose the whaling industry.

Icelandic whale hunters catch minke whales for the Icelandic tourist trade and fin whales for export, mainly to Japan; fin whales are an endangered species.

If you feel strongly about it, there's something you can do.