Iceland : Killer Whales and Northern Lights

Cathy Harlow
A true Iceland expert, Cathy has worked as a guide in Iceland for 25 years, is author of the Horizon Visitors' Guide to Iceland and contributor to several other publications on travel on the island. From 2006 to 2008 she worked during three winter seasons as a whale watch guide in Tysfjord and Lofoten in northern Norway, where hundreds of orcas gathered to feed on overwintering herring in the fjords.

"Taking visitors out to see orcas was the most challenging, exciting and rewarding job I've ever done".

Sometimes working alongside orca research teams, she gathered a wealth of knowledge on killer whales, one of the most enigmatic of cetaceans. Cathy has also worked as a natural history guide and tour leader in Madagascar, Sri Lanka, Azores, Dominica and Bahamas.

Vassili Papastavrou
A whale biologist who has studied live whales since 1984, usually from small sailing boats, Vassili is also deeply involved in the politics of whale conservation and has attended the meetings of the International Whaling Commission since 1992. In 2011 he was a member of the UK delegation to the IWC which successfully pushed through a proposal to modernise the way the IWC works and address the problem of Japan buying the votes of developing countries.

Vassili has studied sperm whales in the Indian, Pacific and Atlantic Oceans (including the South Atlantic off South Georgia) and has studied minke whales off the coast of Scotland. He has published scientific papers on sperm and minke whale biology and has also written about aspects of the management of whaling, including the cruelty of whaling for a variety of journals.

He has written four children's books and has contributed to magazines including BBC Wildlife. He has led whale watching trips in Scotland, Iceland (including one of the first whale watching trips to Iceland with Discover the World in 1993) and the Azores.

Rob Lott
With over 10 years experience working as a naturalist Rob has guided trips, usually on the trail of whales, to The High Arctic, Antarctica, Alaska, Canada, Patagonia and the Mediterranean. Closer to home, Rob takes great pleasure in introducing people to the wonderful marine wildlife found in the UK. Rob has worked on several orca research projects around the world including Patagonia, the Strait Of Gibraltar and Canada.

Rob has written on orcas for BBC Wildlife magazine and his photographs have appeared in newspapers and magazines all over the world. Rob holds a Masters degree in Marine Mammal Science and when not guiding whale watching trips works as Policy Manager for WDCS, the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society. He is delighted to be a part of this exciting new trip to the land of Fire and Ice…and orcas and auroras too!

Alexa Kershaw
Fascinated by wildlife since childhood, Alexa began studying cetaceans off the west coast of Scotland for her Masters degree in Ecological Management 15 years ago. After falling in love with the Hebrides, she spent many years living on the Isle of Mull, guiding whale watching trips while studying harbour porpoises and minke whales.

She has since worked as a researcher, guide, campaigner and consultant on a wide variety of marine mammal research projects, including visual and acoustic surveys in the Baltic Sea, photo-id of cetaceans in South Africa and New Zealand, and an aerial survey of the Great Barrier Reef.

Alexa is a keen wildlife photographer, passionate about conservation, and has combined her cetacean research with her love of guiding and sharing her knowledge of the marine environment. She has led whale watching trips for Discover the World in Scotland, Iceland and South Africa and is thrilled to be returning to Iceland this year.