Unique video of close encounter with humpback whales

Unique footage of a close encounter between a humpback whale and a group on kayaks was revealed on Norwegian news website Verdens Gang. The video was shot while 27-year-old Tromsø resident and Icelandic citizen Saga Svavarsdóttir went out with a group of friends on kayaks in Grøtfjord. It shows a humpback whale almost capsizing Saga’s kayak with its tail fluke. – “A wonderful experience”, she says.

The adventurous group had heard that the bay was filled with humpback whales, but did not know how close a contact they would get when they packed their gear and provisions and put up tents the evening before.

“We could hear the whales blowing off the shoreline when we got out of the car”, says Saga, an Associate of Polar Early Career Scientists, who has lived in Norway for nearly five years.

The expedition members retell their story, explaining that they had set up their tents in the evening, and could hear the sound of whales blowing in the fjord all night long. The following morning, they set off into the fjord on their kayaks.

“At first we paddled around a bit and saw nothing, so we were a little disappointed and thought that we had arrived a little late”, says Saga.
When they finally spotted a whale further into the fjord, the group paddled towards it and realised they were surrounded by many more whales

The party took up their cameras when one of the whales swam past them. The stunning video footage here: http://www.vg.no/nyheter/utrolige-historier/artikkel.php?artid=10071309