Whaling in Iceland

[Berin]

Hi everyone. I personally disagree with whaling, and didn't travel to Iceland for a long time as a result. I did visit a few years ago when whaling was suspended, and found it to be a fantastic place with fantastic people. Mrs Berin and I are heading back there on the bikes this year, even though whaling has restarted, as I think it's better to take positive message to the country, and me sitting at home not going won't help. But I still disagree with whaling, as, it seems, do the majority of Icelanders. Whale watching apparently earns 10 times the revenues of whaling, which is now carried out by 2 individuals on the island.

There's a petition here run by the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society. Take a look and sign if you think it worthwhile

Note: Cross posted from the pub in the a hope of a more erudite audience

 

[Blackal]

Surely - Staying away from Iceland, and convincing everyAlone else to do the same...................

Would be more influential?

Al

 

[Timolgra]

Surely - Staying away from Iceland, and convincing everyAlone else to do the same...................

Would be more influential?

Al

No, if you stayed away from Iceland AND signed the petition it would have more influence.

 

[Berin]

It's a tricky one. I did stay away for years, then they stopped, and I went, then they started again. I'm now more of the opinion that going and telling people that more people would come if they stopped whaling might be better. I think also times are different now, with apparently more Icelanders against whaling than for, and them needing big piles of cash after letting Ragnur Ragnoksson or whatever his name was spending all their money buying the British high street then legging it when it went wrong.

 

[Farmer Palmer]

I've been going to Iceland for years(my tenth trip cycling there this May)


In 2006 I was invited by a friend to an Icelandic whaling station just as they brought in a freshly harpooned 50ft Fin Whale and within three hours after they'd winched it ashore onto the flensing yard after the guys with the huge knives had finished only the backbone was left.

It was a big deal to the Icelanders and there must have been 300 of them there with their kids to see this traditional process taking place. I was the only 'utlandingur' and was able to walk right up to the whale along with all the other folk and we were only moved on when they started the flensing process with the steam winches started up............It was a truly magnificent creature...........But it was dead with the business end of a huge harpoon sticking out of it!

Lots of Icelanders still support whaling and you'll find Minkie and Fin whale on the back page of most good restaurant menus and I for one would rather see a whale swimming around in the ocean rather than on a plate swimming in pepper sauce.

I have tried Minkie whale steak once and its a very fine red meat very similar to fillet steak but I couldn't eat it again..............!

It's a conflicting country Iceland but a lot of the younger folk are realising the importance of whale tourism instead of whaling as a future for the countries economic growth!

Other delicacies are readily available in the country including Harkarl(ammonia rotten shark) Boiled puffin(mostly on Vestmannaeyjar) Rupur(Ptamigan) which is mostly eating at Christmas and various Slattur which consists mostly of sheeps head and other innards that are mostly used in our own Scottish cuisine..............Hardfisk is very popular to and its mostly dried fish which is usually eaten with butter smeared on it and tastes like fishy crisps to me!

 

[Blackal]

I would say that the Icelanders' killing of whales has a lot more integrity than the British desire to hunt foxes with all the attendant pomp and flamboyance..........

Al

(good photos FP )