S U M M E R I S S U E 2 9
viking.com | 47
P
sychologists say a moment's awe plays a big
role in our health, happiness and wellbeing.
After 90 minutes of watching humpback
whales play alongside our inflatable RIB in the
deep, clear waters of the Westfjords, in Iceland, I can
safely say they are right. Awe changes us.
Local boat owner Sigurour whizzed our group of
eight Viking Jupiter
passengers from sleepy
Ísafjörður into the Denmark
Strait and within 15 minutes
we saw the distinctive spray
of humpback whales. Not just
one but two, three, four, five
and more. And that's when
the distinction between the
emotion of awe kicked in
(rather than inspiration or surprise). Awe makes us
feel small – and when these playful, gentle giants
surrounded us it was the most humbling connection
with ocean life that anyone could experience. We were
in the whales' hands so to speak, and they embraced
us in their social harmony, singing to each other (or
maybe us) in choruses of deep, low moans alongside
plenty of huffing and puffing. Segurour explained that
the pod knew his boat and recognised the sound of the
propeller, whether it was on or off. They were not in
the least afraid. It's quite simple on reflection - if these
highly intelligent mammals can remember specific
points in the world's oceans, and return to the same
feeling spot every year, it would not take much to
remember Sigurour's boat! Up close we could
distinguish the humpbacks' different sizes, their
markings and colour variations from pure white to
solid black on their tail fluke, each one unique, like a
fingerprint said Sigurour as we counted up to 12
humpbacks within our view.
e whales glided through the water, each one the
size of a single decker bus, powerful swimmers
skimming our boat in a guard of honour before breaking
At lant i c
O cean
ICELAND
Seydisfjördur
Djúpivogur
Heimaey
WESTMAN ISLANDS
Akureyri
Reykjavík
Ísafjördur
–
C r ui s e
••
O ve r night in Po r t
ICEL A ND 'S N AT UR A L BE AU T Y
Roundtrip, Reykjavik
8 DAYS | 1 COUNTRY | 6 GUIDED TOURS
VIEW
VOYAGE
Moments of awe that will stay with us for a lifetime.
Finding
AWE
By Lesley Bellew
off to flex their butterfly-shaped flukes up, then down,
to dive deep for shrimp feast on the sea bed. ey would
sometimes be down for more than five minutes and we
sat silently wondering where they would come up, often
rising some way ahead and letting out air with a
triumphant noisy blow creating their giant signature
spray of mist. Here, on the edge of the Arctic Circle,
where waterfalls create
rainbows as they run down the
side of flat-top mountains, we
sat stunned by the spectacle we
had just witnessed. is was not
just a moment of awe but 90
minutes of pure magic. Back on
Viking Jupiter we celebrated
with a strong aquavit, raising
our glasses to 'Good Health',
revelling in the knowledge that such a close encounter
was not only a rare privilege but these priceless
moments of awe will stay with us forever.
Awe makes us feel small
– and when these playful,
gentle giants surrounded us
it was the most humbling
connection with ocean life that
anyone could experience.
