Holy. Fog. To say that Thursday morning was working against us would be an incredible understatement. As you might have guessed, we spent a vast majority of the morning trip doing an incredible amount of searching in very foggy conditions. As we made our way out towards the ledge, we were able to get a few quick glances at harbor porpoise, a grey seal, and even bluefin tuna as they jumped out of the water, but not exactly what we were looking for. Eventually, we happened upon a large fin, which turned into a basking shark!
Basking shark at surface
We were able to spend close to ten minutes with this shark as it didn't seem terribly bothered by our presence. There was still a job to be done, however, so we continued on in our search for whales. The seemingly endless wall of fog began to show its cracks as we reached noon. Then finally, a small break. Not perfect visibility, but finally we could see more than a mile out ahead of us. A large splash caught our attention out in the distance, hoping it was a whale. Our hopes began to fade as it never returned to the surface, likely another basking shark. We were running extremely short on time and were about to throw in the towel, when something caught my eye right at the edge of the fog, we headed over to investigate and finally found what we had been searching for.
Humpback whale, Grand Manan
Humpback surface feeding
Applause erupted as we got such amazing looks at the humpback whale, Grand Manan, feeding repeatedly near the surface. Every time, blowing bubbles before lunging on its side and raising its flippers above the surface. We spent every last minute we could with this whale before turning for home. Hoping for just a bit more visibility than the morning trip was willing to provide.
Thursday afternoon began with a sigh of relief as limited visibility was no longer our main concern. Now, we only had ourselves to blame if we fell short of finding a whale. Thankfully that didn't happen, as we made our way offshore, first getting to spend time with Clamp the humpback whale.
Humpback at surface
Our time was well spent with Clamp as she remained very mellow near the surface and actually came close to check us out for just a minute. As we spent time with Clamp, we could see distant splashing at the surface. I had a sneaking suspicion as to who it could be, but could only confirm as we ventured over.
Humpback flipper and throat grooves
Sure enough, it was Grand Manan from our morning trip, continuing their amazing feeding behavior. Almost every time this whale came up to the surface, coming up with a mouthful of saltwater and fish. Lots of time was spent watching Grand Manan feed, before getting a few last looks at Clamp.
Humpback diving
High winds and rough seas have forced us off the water all day Friday, but Saturdays forecast is looking much more promising. We're excited to see what the weekend has in store, see you all out there!
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