The biggest story of the week, so far, is the heroic rescue of a large pod of pilot whales in West Iceland. The pod, which counted somewhere between one and two hundred individuals, had swum into the fjord on Sunday.
Read more: Large pilot whale pod leave Kolgrafarfjörður fjord, locals breathe a sigh of relief
Pilot whale rescue from siggizoom on Vimeo.
While the whales delighted many locals and travelers who could watch the whales play in the water just off the shore, others were more worried. Pilot whale pod are known to beach themselves. Locals feared the large pod might end up stranded on the beaches of the fjord. ICE-SAR companies from nearby towns therefore herded the whales out of the fjord. The first attempt to herd the whales out on Sunday failed, as the animals had returned by Monday morning. The second attempt proved more successful.
Read more: Video: Local kayaker rescues a stranded pilot whale in Kolgrafarfjörður fjord
Only one animal, believed to have been the lead animal, beached itself, but was rescued by a local kayaker, Snorri Rafnsson, best known as Vargurinn. Snorri, who is a local legend, is an avid outdoorsman, nature lover, hunter and social media celebrity. Snorri jumped into the water to push and guide the whale out of the shallows. The rest of the pod appeared to wait and watch while Snorri freed the animal.
It was only after this whale had been guided back to the water that the pod finally returned to sea. ICE-SAR members on zodiac boats then herded the pod out of the fjord, out into Breiðafjörður bay. The whale herders followed the pod to Oddbjarnarsker skerry in the bay.
The beautiful video was shot by Sigurður Helgason, who is the manager of DJI Reykjavík, a specialized drone store.
The biggest story of the week, so far, is the heroic rescue of a large pod of pilot whales in West Iceland. The pod, which counted somewhere between one and two hundred individuals, had swum into the fjord on Sunday.
Read more: Large pilot whale pod leave Kolgrafarfjörður fjord, locals breathe a sigh of relief
Pilot whale rescue from siggizoom on Vimeo.
While the whales delighted many locals and travelers who could watch the whales play in the water just off the shore, others were more worried. Pilot whale pod are known to beach themselves. Locals feared the large pod might end up stranded on the beaches of the fjord. ICE-SAR companies from nearby towns therefore herded the whales out of the fjord. The first attempt to herd the whales out on Sunday failed, as the animals had returned by Monday morning. The second attempt proved more successful.
Read more: Video: Local kayaker rescues a stranded pilot whale in Kolgrafarfjörður fjord
Only one animal, believed to have been the lead animal, beached itself, but was rescued by a local kayaker, Snorri Rafnsson, best known as Vargurinn. Snorri, who is a local legend, is an avid outdoorsman, nature lover, hunter and social media celebrity. Snorri jumped into the water to push and guide the whale out of the shallows. The rest of the pod appeared to wait and watch while Snorri freed the animal.
It was only after this whale had been guided back to the water that the pod finally returned to sea. ICE-SAR members on zodiac boats then herded the pod out of the fjord, out into Breiðafjörður bay. The whale herders followed the pod to Oddbjarnarsker skerry in the bay.
The beautiful video was shot by Sigurður Helgason, who is the manager of DJI Reykjavík, a specialized drone store.
