Posts Tagged ‘Iceland’
Icelandic whalers breach international law and kill iconic, protected whale by mistake
Icelandic whalers out hunting fin whales for the first time in three years appear to have killed a rare, protected blue whale (or blue/fin hybrid) by mistake. Images documenting the slaughter of what is an iconic symbol of the natural world have deeply concerned international whale experts and confirm the indiscriminate and cruel nature of…
Read MoreEnd the whale hunts! Icelandic fin whaler isolated as public mood shifts
Here’s a sight I hoped never again to witness. A boat being scrubbed and repainted on Reykjavik harbour will generally arouse little attention from passing tourists, but this is different and far more chilling. This is the Hvalur 8. It is a fin whaling vessel and it is being readied to return to the high…
Read MoreIceland: A new dawn for whales and dolphins?
Will 2018 be the year that I can finally visit beautiful Iceland purely as a tourist, rather than a campaigner? Maybe it’s not surprising that this fabled ‘land of fire and ice’ should offer visitors a host of contradictions, but the juxtaposition of whale watching and whale hunting in the same waters is surely one…
Read MoreIcelandic whalers bank on tourist ignorance – don't be fooled!
Iceland’s commercial hunt of minke whales opened in early June and as many as 264 whales could be killed this season, including a permitted carry-over of unused quota from last year. Yet, as of today, the Fiskistofa website (Iceland’s Fisheries Directorate) which – perhaps tellingly – has not been updated since June 13th, indicates that…
Read MoreAirlines servicing Iceland urged to stop promotion of whale products
Animal protection and conservation groups in Europe are calling on European airlines that offer flights to Iceland, a popular whale-watching destination, to urge passengers to stop buying whale products while travelling in the country. The move comes as Iceland’s peak tourism season begins and coincides with the imminent start of the country’s annual minke whale…
Read MoreNGOs take campaign against fin whaling to Boston Seafood EXPO
BOSTON SEAFOOD EXPO. Members of the “Don’t Buy from Icelandic Whalers” coalition have affirmed that their campaign will continue until Iceland permanently ends commercial whaling and international trading of whale products, despite recent news that Icelandic whaling company Hvalur hf is suspending its summer hunt of endangered fin whales. The coalition encourages supermarket and food…
Read MoreWhale Trips: First stop – meeting sperm whales off Iceland!
I’m delighted to present a guest blog by Oliver Dirr, a German writer, tourism expert and passionate traveller! Oliver and his wife Theresa recently – in his words – “went on a trip around the world to meet some whales and learn about whale watching. First stop: the sperm whales off Iceland.” I’ve always been…
Read MoreWhy fin whales won't be targeted off Iceland this year
I learned some years ago that it is useless to try to second-guess the mindset and motivations of Iceland’s sole fin whaler, Kristjan Loftsson. And so it proves once again. I am certainly not complaining though, as the news coming out of Iceland in recent days is that there will be no fin whaling…
Read MoreVisiting Iceland? How to ensure whales are saved and not served up
Tourism to Iceland is definitely booming! A recent article in Al Jazeera which has been widely picked up by other media, both within and outside Iceland, boasts the headline: ‘tourism boosts Iceland’s whaling industry’. The article goes on to say that last year, Iceland welcomed a record 1.8 million visitors, an increase of 40% on…
Read MoreWhale beer: really scraping the bottom of the barrel
In what is starting to feel like an alcoholic version of Groundhog day, it is time for the annual farce that is the – mercifully short – ‘whale beer’ season in Iceland. The beer is brewed to sell during Þorri (Thorri), the Icelandic midwinter festival which runs from mid-January to mid-February. Whilst there’s undoubtedly some…
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