Day 3 – Whale Safari – Tromso (Norway)
The last and the craziest day for me on our trip. As a child, I only saw whales on National Geography channel. And I was always fascinated with those documentaries. And here I was, experiencing it live. All I could think that moment was, “Thank you God for letting me experience this”. And whales would be thinking, “It is not easy to see us. You have to go through lot of shit and pain before having an opportunity to glance us”. I was totally down with severe cold, slight fever and migraine. And the extreme wind in deep waters and cold weather added, just a little more spice to it.
Since we had managed to do both northern lights and arctic landscapes on day 1 and day 2, this was the last one on our list. Immediately after arctic landscapes, we walked around the city center to find tours who would help us with whale safari. And much to our disappointment, most said there were no whales around or their tour was pre-booked. Our last hope was going to the Tromso tourist information center in the city center. We were lucky to find the whale safari option but 4 hours drive from Tromso. No matter what, we were determined to do all the things on our list. We came back to our hotel with all brochures. First thing was to login and try and book the tour. I was insisting my colleague that we book with a private tour, so we get a better chance of viewing the scenery and we could make pitstops as well. But that small group tour was full. However it is said that certain things are blessings in disguise. It would mean, we going on a rib boat, which means, me and whales at the same level. I think I would have died out of shock right there. And trust me they can be as close to your boat as you can think.
We booked a tour with a bigger group which would involve some observatory work on whales and reporting to research group (only if interested). We started at 6 AM in the morning and reached a place called “Skjervøy Island” by bus. This was 4 hours away from Tromso. The drive itself was extremely beautiful and I realized how beautiful Norway is. We immediately got onto to our small boat. We were around 20 to 25 people in the boat. Our guide was a biologist, researching on whales. He gave us a brief introduction and what kind of whales we would see as our Captain drove us into deep sea. Soon we spotted Orcas (The Killer Whales).
We all rushed to the open deck. Our excitement had no bounds as we spotted the Orcas and Humpback whales. They were all around. It was the first time that I realized how difficult it is to even stand on the deck in deep waters. We were already warned to take some support but not of the boat railing or to simply go down on our knees. Else we would be inside water. It was a full 3 hour show for us. As we were getting further inside, the weather became very rough and our boat swayed like hell. If our boat had tilted a little more, we would be inside water surrounded by Orcas. But our captain was very well accomplished and experienced in handling the situation. He was very calm and kept all of us very comfortable. And as I said, whales can get as close to the boat as you can think. Some actually passed under our boat. While I went down to lower deck to grab some hot tea, I saw a humpback whale make a big thud in the water. It was a super loud sound and since it was so close to us, our boat swayed literally left and right after that.
You will find some tips for planning your Tromso trip below-
After about 3 hours, we returned to the shore. Happy and satisfied. This marked the end of our journey. During our return journey to Tromso, all I did was sleep in the bus. Tired with all the cold, headache, I simply crashed onto bed after reaching hotel. Nevertheless, it was all worth it.
Some tips to plan a trip to Tromso –
Decide your main goal. Northern lights, whales, arctic landscapes etc.. Accordingly plan your days. Tromso has one of the best connectivity amongst all places for viewing Northern lights.
I would suggest to keep 3 days in tromso, so you have higher chance to see Northern Lights.
Do check weather conditions for Tromso. https://www.accuweather.com/en/no/tromso/256116/weather-forecast/256116.
Check Northern Lights predictions on https://www.norway-lights.com/#tromso. Keep your plan a little flexible.
Northern lights can be viewed from late August to early April. And whale season is between late Oct/Nov to Jan. However viewing of northern lights is a natural phenomenon and totally depends on weather on that day.
It’s very cold and dark in Dec and Jan and hence if you think you cannot handle extreme cold, then try to plan around Nov or Feb/march.
Carry some good food options with you if you are a vegetarian specially for Indians(since I know the vegetarian options we usually look for). It is hard to find veg food.
Try and book a hotel near city center so it is easy to reach all pickup points for tours. You can easily walk around and save some money on transportation.
Visit the Tromso information center at the city center. They have all the information you need and would guide you on the right tours as well in case you have no clue on which tour company to go with. https://www.visittromso.no/en
I would recommend Wandering Owl tour company for Northern Lights and Arctic landscapes. Trust me they are damn good.
Carry some ready to make soup packets, hot water bag and small kettle to boil water.
Comments