Sea Turns Red with Blood in Faroe Island During Whale Slaughter Festival

• The Faroe Island is a popular European summer destination. Aside from its beautiful scenery, the Grindadrap tradition also attracts many visitors.
• Also known as the Grind, the Grindadrap, is a whale-killing tradition practiced in Faroe Island since the 9th century brought by Norse ancestors.
• This year, 252 whales and 32 dolphins fell victims to this bloody, old-fashioned Faroese tradition.

WARNING: Graphic and distressing content. Viewer discretion is advised.

The Faroe Island is one of the lush green vacation hotspots in Europe during summer. Situated right smack in the middle of the Northern Atlantic Ocean, the place is truly a beauty to behold.

But aside from its green valleys and clear blue waters, some vacationers go during the summer to witness Faroe Island’s bloody tradition, the Grindadráp, or whale slaughter festival. Even children and adolescents take part in“The Grind”.

Grindadráp literally means slaughter in the Faroese language. It has been practiced since the 9th century starting from the Norse settlers in the island. There is no fixed date for this festival but the ideal months are usually in the summer time from June to October when large migrating numbers or pods of whales are sighted.

Once the migrating whales are spotted, manned fishing boats and speed boats will start chasing out the whales until they have nowhere to go but the shallow waters and the shore. There in the shore, hundreds of whales are greeted by a rush of people who will begin to slaughter them.

Usually the whales are cut up from their dorsal fins and across the neck. A bloody ocean water cam then seen in the aftermath.

This year has been dubbed as one of the most ‘productive’ whale slaughter festivals. The turnout was tallied by Sea Shepherd with almost 252 whales and 35 dolphins killed in the grind that happened earlier this July.

For an idea how the Grindadrap actually takes place, watch this video of the event taken a few years ago.

Given the wildlife endangerment and extinction our planet is facing today, what do you think of this brutal ancient tradition?