Tuesday, June 14

As we made our way offshore today the wind slacked off and we found ourselves surrounded by a beautifully calm ocean. During our trip we saw 3 Fin whales but these whales were doing a great job moving around so we decided to move on. Along the way we had 2 Minke whales pop up over the course of the day. Our trip also included two Humpback whales creating a few bubble clouds.

Humpback whale tail

Both Owl and Hornbill spent the afternoon maneuvering around but never becoming associated with one another.

Owl

Hornbill

Our last sighting of the day occurred on our ride back in when we came across a MASSIVE Basking shark! With the surface of the ocean being so calm you could see the whole body of this shark as it swam so close to the boat! What a special treat to end an already great day.

Our Basking shark was so close to the boat I could only capture a portion of its body at any moment! Can you see the open mouth of this shark?

Head, open mouth, gills and fins of our Basking shark

Monday, June 13

Today our travels took us to Jeffreys Ledge itself before we found our first whale which was a Minke whale that started swimming in circles around us.

Minke whale

After some nice looks at this Minke whale we went to investigate a distant spout we had been keeping an eye on. What eventually surfaced nearby? A Humpback whale. And not just any Humpback whale. One that is a favorite among us at Granite State Whale Watch. It was Owl, an adoptable whale, thanks to the Blue Ocean Society for Marine Conservation!

Owl's back including her distinctive scar; an old ship strike wound that she was fortunate enough to survive through.

This was our first time seeing this familiar whale this season so it was a very special treat to come across her today.

Owl

We had some quality looks as this whale was slowly steadily on the move. Soon it was time to head for home but during our travels we even swung by a Basking shark that was moseying along. We are now whale watching seven days a week so come join us on an adventure anytime. See you soon!

Saturday, June 11

The wind and rain stayed away (mostly) just long enough for us to venture out to Jeffreys Ledge. Unfortunately, we didn't find any whales on the Ledge, but we did find 4 minke whales in between the mainland and the Ledge! One minke whale in particular was amazing to watch! It was taking short dives and frequently surfaced near the boat! We all got great looks at it's pointed nose, white flipper patches and curved fin.

Two other minkes were in the area of our cooperative friend, but were a bit more elusive. We then continued on to search other areas only to find no other whales, but a lot of Wilson's storm petrels.  On our way in, we spotted another minke whale but this one apparently didn't want to be watched. We saw it twice and then it vanished. Such is nature! I wonder what we'll find on our next adventure!

Wednesday, June 8

We had another school trip today and so off we went to the open ocean this morning. Our first stop of the day was Humpback whale #0050. We all got some great looks at this whale since the majority of the time this whale just circled around, remaining relatively close to the boat the whole time!

Humpback whale #0050 (above and below)

We ventured further offshore, passing by 2 Minke whales, and ended up coming across 3 Fin whales. These whales were spending a bit more time below the surface and moving around in sporadic movements making watching these whales a bit more challenging. It was still impressive however, having multiple of the second largest mammals on earth around us!

Fin whale

Many thanks to our group for always keeping a look out for whales and spending a nice day with massive wildlife!

Tuesday, June 7

Today we took out a group of school children eager for the day. The whales provided plenty of activity for the students as the ocean was alive with life. Sightings for the day included 6 Minke whales, 3 Fin whales, 3 Humpback whales and a Basking shark. Definitely plenty to see and enjoy offshore. The day started with a group of 3 Minke whales moving about before we spotted spouts from other whales in the distance. Whales were moving in all different directions so we slowly maneuvered around watching Fin whales cruising through the area, Minke whales appear and 3 Humpback whales pass by one another.

Fin whale swimming past us

Humpback whale

Among all the animals we were able to identify a few of our whales. Two of those whales are adopt-a-whales with the Blue Ocean Society for Marine Conservation. Scar Minke and Hornbill were sighted for the first time for the 2016 season!

Scar Minke whale even from a distance is as distinctive as can be

Hornbill the Humpback whale

We were also able to identify the other two Humpback whales seen, both of which are familiar visitors to Jeffreys Ledge: Chromosome and #0050.

Chromosome

Humpback whale #0050

As we started for home one more type of marine life wanted to be spotted and so we checked out our first Basking shark for the season. What a great way to wrap up a great day!

Basking shark's large dorsal fin (left) and tail (right). Thanks to our crew member for capturing this moment!

Monday, June 6

Today we headed out to Jeffreys Ledge with a school group from Goffstown. The extra rocking and rolling from yesterday's weather made our trip a bit more 'exciting' (or not, depending on your stomach) as we ventured offshore. We ended up finding 2 Fin whales and a Minke whale during our travels. We got some really nice looks at our first Fin whale for even though it was darting around the area it never moved terrible far in any direction.

Fin whale spout

Do you see the white lower jaw of this Fin whale? This feature makes Fin whales one of the only asymmetrically-colored animals in the animal kingdom!

Fin whale

Our second Fin whale of the day was just the opposite. It was very much on the move and when you try to keep up with a 'greyhound of the sea' (that's what Fin whale's are nicknamed because they can swim so fast!) they typically win that challenge. We have more school trips this week and will be back out for our public whale watches this weekend so stay tuned!

Saturday, June 4

Fog, fog and more fog today. Soon after leaving the harbor we were welcomed by a wall of fog that did everything possible to NOT dissipate for us. Fog can appear and disappear in a matter of moments so it is always an unknown as to where, when and how long we will find ourselves enveloped in it. While searching for whales was a bit challenging our persistent passengers never backed down and helped in spotting some of our whales for the day. In total we had 3 Minke whales and a Humpback whale. Our first Minke whale disappeared just as quickly as it had appeared so we decided to continue on towards Jeffreys Ledge. Our second Minke whale was much more cooperative. While watching this whale it was within the foggy horizon that another whale suddenly became barely visible. Our Minke whale had brought us to a Humpback whale!

Humpback whale surrounded by fog

The Humpback whale was darting this way and that way giving everyone some fantastic looks as it surfaced all around the boat. The black and white pigmentation pattern on the underside of this whale's tail matched up with Boomerang, a 31 year old female. Great to see her in the area today!

Boomerang

On our travels home we stopped to get a quick look at another Minke whale. Many thanks to all as you never gave up in the searching process and eventually were rewarded in those efforts!

Minke whale appearing in the fog