October 1, 2026

 Today was a glassy, gray Thursday as we ventured offshore with a school field trip. Day two of being back on the water after the recent nor'easter was nothing short of exceptional! Our trip began with a juvenile humpback whale that held us hostage for a long while as it repeatedly circled around our boat as we sat idle with the engines turned off.

Curious humpback whale

Eventually, this whale continued on with its day. As we sat waiting to make sure our humpback had moved on, we were able to get distant looks at a minke whale and a fin whale!

Distant finback diving

Once we relocated our humpback, we were able to slowly meander towards another pair of humpbacks that had moved into the area. This was the beginning of another exciting encounter as this was a mother/calf pair!

Mom/calf diving

These two humpbacks spent much of their time circling the area, giving us amazing looks at the pair. As we followed along with these whales, we were able to see a distant spout with quite a bit of splashing following it, so we said goodbye to our whales, and ventured over. After making our way closer, our day of amazing sightings didn't let up as we were now getting looks at a humpback whale being followed by a mixed pod of Atlantic white-sided and common dolphins!!!

Humpback and dolphins

Now, I say that this humpback was being followed and not in association with these dolphins. That's because this whale repeatedly slashed its tail and flippers at the surface, likely trying to get the dolphins to make some space around it. This humpback began to pick up quite a bit of speed, but it did little to send a message to the dolphins.

White-sided and common dolphins

Unfortunately, we couldn't ignore the clocks any longer, and it was time to head back to Rye Harbor. See you all this weekend!

September 30, 2026

I can't believe our last trip was 10 days ago! The recent Nor'easter really turned up the seas, keeping us on land for much longer than we wanted. As we headed out today, no one would have ever known that just days ago, the seas were cresting at 14 feet!

A fin whale was first seen in the distance, and as we approached, we noticed that it was actually a pair of fin whales! Fin whales have been few and far between this season, so this was really exciting! 

            

And then, before we knew it, the pair of fin whales was actually a trio! To make it even better, the trio wasn't spending much time underwater, just slowly moving along. The glassy ocean surface really showcased their size, and we even recognized one of the fin whales as BOS# 0723, a whale first identified in the area in 2007!

We did a little more searching, and after some time, found a pair of humpback whales. One of these was occasionally lifting its flipper up in the air while both were just lazily swimming along. We even saw both of them lift their bumpy snouts out of the water multiple times!

A few minke whales were spotted in the distance throughout the trip, and a few lucky people got a great, albeit fast, look at a bluefin tuna leaping out of the water close by!

September 19-20, 2026

While the wind was a little stronger than the forecast predicted, it did subside as the day continued on Saturday. We made our way offshore and were able to spend time with one of our very familiar whales, Satula the humpback whale. 

Satula surfacing

This whale was busy darting around, creating a couple of bubble clouds, and likely taking advantage of all the schooling fish in the area.

Satula diving

Satula's unique pigmentation pattern

Sunday was cloudy with a few sprinkles, but that's okay, because the whales don't mind. We got a chance to spend time with three humpback whales. We first started with Dross, who was busy blowing bubble clouds, circling the area. 

We then checked out Valley for a bit. While we watched this whale, another familiar whale, Pinball, joined Valley. What a great way to wrap up the weekend!

Valley

Pinball and Valley at the surface

Diving whale

September 18, 2026

 Friday's whale watch made for a beautiful day to be on the water as the surface conditions was amazingly calm and glassy! After making our way out towards Jeffrey's Ledge, our sightings began with a single humpback, Crisscross, before we moved on to a pair of humpbacks, Pylon and Partition, not too far away. This pair seemed to be very mellow at the surface. Right up until the moment one of them shot awake and quickly dove down. We all got our cameras ready as just a few moments later...

Huge breach!!!

One of our whales jumped clear out of the water twice! after doing so, it began a long series of flipper slapping at the surface, eventually being joined by the other humpback in the pair. All the while, a second pair of humpbacks, Draco and Quill, made a quick appearance nearby before continuing along. 

Belly-up with both flippers up!

Pair of humpbacks

We eventually let these whales continue on with their day as we moved away to finish up our trip on a very sleepy trio of humpback whales. This grouping consisted of Touchdown, Rope and Whirlwind.

Trio of humpbacks

September 16, 2026

 

The offshore wind was a bit snappy on Wednesday, but that didn’t stop us from finding marine life! A large pod of Atlantic white-sided dolphins appeared in the distance, and soon we found ourselves surrounded by these beautiful creatures, including lots of mother/calf pairs!

Soon after, we spotted a blow from a humpback whale on the horizon. This was our friend Owl, who has been seen frequently not only this summer but also in past summers! She was consistently taking about 8.5-minute dives. We could almost set our clocks to her regular dive times! Once at the surface, she would just float almost motionless before lifting her huge tail out of the water as she dove.

A small harbor seal made a brief appearance, and our course home took us through the Isles of Shoals, where three more seals were curiously looking at us as we passed by!

September 12, 2026

During our morning lighthouse-focused trip, we spotted a familiar sight: a whale! We had to divert for a few minutes because it was "Finke!" We first spotted this whale in 2011, have seen it occasionally over the years, and have only had one previous sighting this season. 

Finke the minke off the coast of Maine

With such beautiful conditions, it was great to document this whale, its injury, and lack of a dorsal fin (get it? Finless minke = Finke!). 

Such a large scar where this minke whale's dorsal fin used to be

During our actual whale watch in the afternoon, we spent time watching Satula the humpback whale. Did you know this whale also lost its dorsal fin? The sad realization of the threats all whales face: human-related interactions. Luckily, these whales survived these interactions. 

Satula and its lack-of-dorsal fin

Satula diving with a curious tern flying overhead

Satula

Our last sighting of the day was another whale, again with no dorsal fin. This time, it's because this species doesn't have dorsal fins! We were privileged to spot a North Atlantic right whale during our travels home, one of the ~380 of this species. It was completely unexpected and extremely memorable. Gosh, wildlife is incredible.

Due to the weather, we have canceled our whale watch on Sunday. Stay tuned for later this week when we get back out on the water searching for wildlife!

September 11, 2026

 Friday's whale watch began with a breeze from the west that followed us all the way offshore. After reaching an area where we had luck with whales a few days prior, it didn't take us long to find our first sighting in the form of Owl the humpback whale.

Humpback whale

Owl diving

As we tracked along with Owl, another humpback could be seen, slowly making its way into the area. Eventually, it crossed paths with Owl, so we switched our attention to this second whale.

Humpback surfacing

With a dorsal fin this large, it didn't take long for us to identify this humpback as Spoon! We followed this whale for a bit, and before long, both Spoon and Owl decided to pair up with one another.

Owl and Spoon

Not long later, it was time for us to start headed home. Time for us to see what the weekend has in store!