Sunday, August 24

The wind was almost nonexistent today so with just of a bit of swell rolling over the ocean it was a great day to search for whales. This morning we definitely saw whales. 7 Minke whales and 3 Fin whales were out and about during our trip. We started the day with a very cooperative Fin whale.

Spout from a Fin whale

This whale was just spending a few minutes under the water giving us some great looks to start our trip with.

First whale of the day

As we pressed on we checked out lots of different Minke whales popping up here and there. At one point we ended up in an area where there were 4 different Minke whales around!

One of the many Minke whales seen this morning

Another Minke whale

Not only can you see differences between Minke whales based on any scars or marks found along these whales bodies but their dorsal fins can be extremely unique. Check out just a couple of the many fins from our Minke whales seen this morning.

Close up of a very distinctly-shaped Minke whale dorsal fin

Another uniquely-shaped Minke whale dorsal fin

Before it was time to head for home we spotted a larger exhalation. One spout turned into two. There were a pair of Fin whales nearby. We got a great look as these two whales slowly swam by us. It was Dingle along with the same whale that had been seen spending time with Dingle during yesterday's trip!

Dingle's very long body (just a portion!) seen at the surface

Second part of our Fin whale pair

We thought for sure we would get some more great looks at these two whales as they had so slowly been moving at the surface. Turns out these whales had other plans. 20+ minutes later we still had yet to relocate these animals. Two of the second largest mammals on earth with absolutely perfect conditions for whale spotting and yet we still could not find them. These greyhounds of the sea can certainly make themselves known and disappear just as quickly no matter what the weather conditions are. Sometimes the whales have their own plans that seem to definitely not include us!

This afternoon was more of the same. Lots of whales and more nice weather! We started the trip with a quick stop on an Ocean sunfish. This large, bizarre-looking, creature was just meandering at the surface giving us all some great looks at the world's largest bony fish!

Ocean sunfish

We continued on our way and thanks to our other whale watching friends first stopped on a large Fin whale. It was the same animal who was seen swimming alongside Dingle on our morning trip. However, Dingle was nowhere to be seen. Instead this stealth-moving whale was being a bit tricky at first. After a few surfacings we were able to get a really nice look at this animal.

First Fin whale seen this afternoon

With other boats nearby we decided to give these whales some space and check out a few other critters out on their own. We ended up getting some great looks at a handful of the 7 Minke whales seen throughout our travels. Once again it took a little bit of patience as these whales were moving all around but eventually watched as they began to swim circles around us!

One of the many Minke whales darting around us this afternoon

Our day ended with a look at a Fin whale. But it wasn't the one we had spent time with earlier, it was the exact same whale we started our trip with at the start of the day!

First and final whale of the day, the same Fin whale!

We once again got some great looks at this whale as it spent most of its time circling around the area. A very nice way to end our day with lots of whales in between starting and ending our day with the exact same animal!

Calm seas, sailing day and a whale spout all wrapped into another nice day of whale watching!