Wildlife swimming in Skjervøy

Each winter, vast shoals of herring pour into the fjords of Arctic Norway around Skjervøy, and behind them come the predators: pods of orcas working the bait balls, and humpback whales lunging up through them with mouths agape.

For a few weeks it becomes one of the greatest marine wildlife gatherings on earth — and you can get in the water with it.

Snorkelling here, in the dim blue light of the polar winter, you drift at the surface while orcas glide past below and humpbacks surface nearby, feeding on the herring that drew them in. It is a genuinely wild, unstaged encounter with the ocean's giants in their element.

The conditions are demanding — near-freezing water, a drysuit, short polar days, and no guarantees, since it all depends on where the herring and the whales are on any given day.

But when it comes together, floating among hunting orcas beneath the Arctic sky is as extraordinary as wildlife encounters get.

Boat-based days searching the Arctic fjords for feeding whales, then slipping into near-freezing water in a drysuit to snorkel near orcas and humpbacks as they hunt herring.

Encounters are wild and unstaged — you drift at the surface while animals pass below or surface nearby — and never guaranteed, since it hinges on where the herring and whales are that day.

Expect cold, short polar daylight, time spent scanning and repositioning by boat, and committing cold-water snorkelling that suits confident, fit swimmers rather than nervous beginners. When it happens, it's overwhelming. Drysuit, hood and gloves are essential, and blank days are part of the deal.

Book a licensed whale-snorkelling trip out of Skjervøy or the wider Tromsø region for the herring season, roughly November to January, when the orcas and humpbacks gather.

It's guided and boat-based; operators supply the drysuit and cold-water snorkelling kit, but come as a confident open-water swimmer comfortable with cold and some rough boat time. Reach the area via Tromsø.

Bring warm base layers, and set realistic expectations — sightings and in-water encounters depend entirely on the whales, so allow several days to improve your odds. Regulations protect the animals, so follow the operator's rules on distance and behaviour in the water.