June 24, 2026

This morning, we had a long ride out to the area of Jeffreys Ledge where we have been seeing whale activity lately. After a bit of searching, we found the humpback whale, Satula,  hanging out near some fishing boats. We had some great looks at this familiar whale before continuing on.

Soon, we saw a minke whale, and as we waited for it to resurface, we noticed a small dark fin flopping up and down nearby. An ocean sunfish! For those of you who have not encountered an ocean sunfish, these animals are quite unique in every sense. They really don’t look like they should exist, or that evolution messed up somewhere down the line. But ocean sunfish are amazing, growing to be ~10 feet in diameter and weighing up to 5000 pounds!

Another humpback was spotted in the distance, and this turned out to be Sedge! Sedge and Satula look very similar in that both of them have lost their dorsal fin over the years. We don’t see that many humpback whales who have lost their dorsal fins completely, but Sedge and Satula seem to be regular visitors of Jeffreys Ledge! 

The afternoon trip started off by heading to the area where we had left Sedge on the morning trip. As we approached the area, a humpback without a dorsal fin was spotted in the distance. This could have been Sedge or Satula again, but we didn’t get close enough to confirm. As we waited for the whale to resurface, we saw some splashing about a mile away- dolphins! As dolphins are known to move fast, we decided to leave the humpback whale and try to keep up with these fast-swimming animals.  As we caught up to the pod, we could see how large and spread out the group was. Many dolphins were leaping out of the water while some were tail-slapping close to others. Even a few calves were spotted hanging out close to their mothers. Oh, I forgot to say that these were Atlantic white sided dolphins- the most commonly seen dolphin species in our area. The pod numbered at around 100-150 individuals which is quite the sight as our average pod size is about 40.

We headed back to the area where we had the fin-less humpback whale and soon spotted a blow in that neighborhood. This whale certainly wasn’t Sedge or Satula- it had a prominent dorsal fin! Before long, this whale joined up with another humpback whale and both were identified! Valley and Alligator! These two occasionally surfaced together, but also by themselves.

After leaving the humpbacks, we got a passing look at a large grey seal as we head for home.

Beautiful day on the Ledge! 

June 21-23, 2026

Sunday was quite the day. On top of it being Father's Day and the Summer Solstice, we found plenty to look at. Once we got to Jeffreys Ledge on Sunday morning, our first find was Clamp, the humpback whale. As Clamp was moving through the area, splashing was spotted in the distance. To our absolute delight, it was a pod of dolphins, but not the type of dolphins we typically encounter. It was a pod of approximately 50 bottlenose dolphins! 

Bottlenose dolphins!

These toothed whales are sooooo much larger than our usual suspects. What a fantastic sighting.

Bottlenose dolphins on the move

Eek, look at these bottlenose dolphins! 😍

Interestingly enough, within this group of bottlenose dolphins was at least one Atlantic white-sided dolphin, moving in synchrony with the pod. The trip wrapped up with two more humpback whales - Fan and Pinball. 

Fan

On Sunday afternoon, we first started with a pair of humpback whales. Spika and Valley were swimming side by side. Pinball was also sighted as we spent time offshore. 

Spika and Valley

Pinball

As we headed for home, we were treated to more toothed whales. This time it was a pod of approximately 150(!) Atlantic white-sided dolphins. What a large pod! It was so fun watching these speedy whales move through the water. 

Atlantic white-sided dolphin

The weather only allowed for a morning trip on Monday. As we headed offshore, we checked out a minke whale in the stunningly calm seas. 

Minke whale. Look at that ocean!

Once on Jeffreys Ledge, our first spout belonged to Sedge, the humpback whale. 

Sedge

We continued searching and ultimately found humpback whales Pinball, Alligator, Clamp, Valley, and Fan. 

Humpback whale diving

Pair of humpback whales including one upside down!

Humpback whale

We also checked out an ocean sunfish, attempted to look at two different basking sharks, and even spotted a couple more minke whales along the way.

Subsurface ocean sunfish

Basking shark dorsal fin

The weather kept us on land Tuesday morning, so we headed back out to Jeffreys Ledge in the afternoon. During our offshore travels, we passed multiple minke whales. Once on the ledge, we found a pair of humpback whales, but they quickly moved off in different directions. 

Humpback whale

We first spent some time with Scylla, the humpback whale. From there, we checked out Fan, the humpback whale, who quickly grouped up with two other humpback whales, Valley and Alligator. Among the whales, we also briefly checked out an ocean sunfish.

Pair of humpback whales

Valley diving

Ocean sunfish

June 19-20, 2026

Ocean conditions kept us on land on Friday, and we only had an afternoon trip on Saturday. The trip was spent with Pinball, the humpback whale, moseying around offshore. The whale's short dive intervals and slow swimming speed allowed us to get some beautiful looks at it. 

Pinball diving (above and below)

We were also treated to a fin whale that surfaced nearby a few times.

Sleek, sneaky, fin whale

June 17, 2026

Wednesday morning, we welcomed a lovely school group from Deerfield for an end-of-year field trip. Although it was a long ride out to where the whales have been hanging out, the kids did great! After passing by a minke whale inshore, we eventually found a couple of humpback whales. The first was Sedge, a whale who lost his dorsal fin a few years ago, but is doing just fine! Sedge is a regular visitor of Jeffreys Ledge, and this was our second sighting of him this season!

Next, we saw Pinball again! She has been seen sporadically in the area for the past week or so. It’s always nice to see a familiar tail out there!

Another minke whale was spotted nearby, and we passed a solitary harbor porpoise on our way home.

 

Wednesday afternoon, we headed back to where had seen whales on the morning trip. We got a quick look at a fin whale on our way there, and after spending a little time in the area, we spotted several blows. The first was Pinball again!

The next couple of whales were fin whales, one of which passed right by our stern! Amazing looks at this huge animal!

We wrapped up the day by watching a pair of fin whales right next to the boat! One of the two was later identified as #0402, a fin whale first documented in the Jeffreys Ledge area 22 years ago!  

The site fidelity of some of these whales is incredibly impressive. Just like we have our favorite restaurants, some whales have their favorite places to feed, and we are lucky that so many of them choose Jeffreys Ledge!

 

June 15-16, 2026

The calm sea and clear horizon were a perfect backdrop for our trip on Monday. Once we got out to Jeffreys Ledge, we spent time with Ditto, the humpback whale. This whale was doing a good job holding its breath, so we soon pressed on in search of more activity. We next found Wigwam, the humpback whale, and a basking shark. The trip wrapped up with another familiar humpback whale, Pinball!

Basking shark dorsal fin

Pinball (above and below)

On Tuesday morning, we took out a great group of students from Gilford. We were so fortunate to start the trip with a pod of Atlantic white-sided dolphins. These whales were zipping through the water, showcasing their speedy movements and providing fun for everyone on board. 

Speedy dolphins (above and below)

Atlantic white-sided dolphin

We also got a chance to spend time with Pinball, the humpback whale. In a most fantastic, unexpected moment, Pinball breached! WOW. So surprising, most weren't ready (sorry, I didn't get a photo). 

Pinball diving (above and below)

During our travels offshore in the afternoon, we first found a fin whale. After a couple of looks, and even a minke whale popping up in the area, we continued out to Jeffreys Ledge. 

Fin whale

To our delight, and with a little patience, we found and spent time with Valley, the humpback whale.

Valley

June 13-14, 2026

A cooler ocean and calm seas were waiting for us as we headed offshore on Saturday. Our first find of the day was a trio of humpback whales. All three were sleeping for most of the time we watched them, relaxing on the ocean's surface. Individuals included Spoon, Valley, and Clamp. 

Three humpback whales

Humpback whale

After sneaking away from these mellow mammals, we came across a basking shark, one of the second-largest species of shark in the world. 

Basking shark (above and below)

This fish gave us some great looks as we were able to meander alongside it. Lastly, and perhaps most impressively, we spent time with a very curious minke whale. This whale swam circles around us and under us (our engines were shut off), experiencing some incredible looks at this species and its unique minke "mittens!"

Minke whale swimming towards us

Minke whale surfacing. Can you see the white patches on its flipper, commonly referred to as the minke "mittens."

Minke whale snout

On Sunday, we made our way out to Jeffreys Ledge, where we got a chance to spend time with two different humpback whales. We first came across Ditto before checking out Alligator. Always fun to see what is out there for us to find on our trips. In addition to the humpback whales, we also briefly checked out an ocean sunfish!

Humpback whale diving

Ocean sunfish

Alligator, the humpback whale