Monday, July 13

This morning we started whale watching with multiple Fin whales in the area! We first spent time with a single circling around while we watched another begin to move its way in towards us.

The first large Fin whale of the day

Soon we realized we had a mother and her calf moving into the area. What a pleasant surprise!

Mom (left) and calf (right) coming into the area

We got a great look at mom before she disappeared and ultimately ended up spending the rest of the time with the calf as this whale darted from one side of the boat to another, perhaps checking us out, while we watched this potential curious youngster spend time near by.

This Fin whale mother was first sighted on Jeffreys Ledge in 1997!

"Small" Fin whale calf

In addition, we had a brief sighting of a Blue shark as well as a total of 5 Minke whales, a few of them around our Fin whales, and a few more before turning for home. One of these whales was Scar, a very familiar Minke and great whale to end our trip with this morning!

Scar Minke

This afternoon we were once again watching a Fin whale but this time it was a completely different one than any of the three we had seen during our morning trip. This whale was spending A LOT of time below the surface but we were extremely fortunate enough to get some excellent looks at this extremely large mammal!

Afternoon Fin whale

We were also lucky enough to check out a Blue shark for a bit before continuing along coming across a few Minke whales, 5 in total, including a pair that was being quite active. These two whales were almost porpoising through the water appearing to chase one another. They were very impressive to watch as they crashed through the water with one another.

One in our pair of Minke whales moving with force!

Our pair of Minke whales calming down as they surface for a some breaths of air

Definitely an unusual behavior to see from two whales associated with each other and yet a reminder of just how unexpected wildlife can be at any moment in time.