What a relief it was, and excitement, to start the week with no fog! A clear horizon surrounded us, something we hadn't seen in a few days. Monday morning's trip started with a lone Atlantic white-sided dolphin. We know toothed whales travel in pods, so while this sighting was a bit unusual, this whale was probably looking for a pod to join.
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| Single white-sided dolphin |
Further offshore, we found Pinball, the humpback whale. This whale was steadily on the move, so much so that we even found this whale later in the trip because it had moved so much!
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| Pinball getting a little rambunctious 😉 |
We also saw two fin whales, getting a few looks at one, effortlessly moving through the water.
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| Such a distinctive dorsal fin for this fin whale! |
On Monday afternoon's trip, our first whale was a fin whale. We haven't seen a lot of fin whales this season, so what a great way to start the trip with one of the second-largest animals on earth! We then got a chance to spend time with Sedge, the humpback whale. Calm seas + a horizon(!) + whales = Happy Monday!
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| Fin whale |
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| Diving humpback whale |
Tuesday morning started with an unexpected sighting, a pod of offshore Bottlenose dolphins! These toothed whales are sighted in the Gulf of Maine occasionally, but not regularly.
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| Offshore bottlenose dolphins |
Among these whales was a single Atlantic white-sided dolphin. What a way to start the day. 😁
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| Atlantic white-sided dolphin trying to "blend in" with the bottlenose dolphins |
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| Bottlenose dolphins in the air. This doesn't even look real (I promise, it is!). 😍 |
As the trip progressed, we saw four humpback whales (Highlighter, Sedge, Satula, and Spika) and a minke whale.
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| Humpback whale tail |
We also saw another pod of toothed whales! This time it was a small pod of white-beaked dolphins. Oh my goodness, so many rarities! These dolphins were being speedy, but still incredible to have come across.
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| If you look REALLY closely, you can see a white patch associated with this white-beaked dolphin |
On Tuesday afternoon, the unexpected continued. We witnessed Cacophony, the humpback whale, breach multiple times. What an impressive sight! The day wrapped up with yet another pod of toothed whales. This time, a group of Atlantic white-sided dolphins. Mother Nature certainly likes to keep us on our toes; thanks!
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Cacophony breaching!
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| Mid-tail breach! |
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