Today was a beautifully calm day to be out on the ocean. Captain Gary said that it was the calm before the storm, before Hurricane Bill comes up the coast. As we headed out to the south, we came across a sleepy Humpback. When Humpbacks sleep, they swim just under the surface very slowly and only surfacing ever so slightly to breathe. We were able to identify this Humpback as Trident. This behavior is called logging, as the whale looks very much like a log in the water.
A Humpback named TridentAfter observing this behavior for a bit, we decided to let the whale sleep and heard from some Tuna fishermen friends that there were some more active whales a few miles south of us. The visibility was very good today, as we were able to see at least 5 miles ahead of us, making it easy to spot whales further out. To our luck, we saw at least 3 Humpbacks in the distance with quite a few Finback whales off in the distance a few miles out past the Humpbacks. As we got closer, we realized that it was a female Humpback named Churn and a female named Basmati with her calf! It was quite the sight to see the little guy (or girl)! We were in relatively deep water, around 600 feet and most of the bait was around 400 feet of water, so the whales were taking fairly long dives.
Churn, Basmati, and her calf!
Basmati and Churn
Churn's flukeAfter a while, we decided to go check out the Finback whales off into the distance. As we were steaming ahead, we could see at least 4 different blows swimming together speeding through the water. These Finbacks were swimming at fast speeds, chasing feed and traveling, all together in a row!
Finback WhaleThese whales were amazingly traveling tightly together, right at the surface for numerous blows, and cruising through the water. It was a really neat sight to see. Our passengers were amazed at the size of these whales, being almost 80 feet long which is close to the length of our boat!
On our way in, the Captain decided to check out a Humpback first before heading into port. Again this whale was logging or sleeping when we approached it. As we watched it slowly swim through the water, it suddenly make a quick deep dive. Captain Gary, who has been the captain of the whale watching boat since 1998 knows these whales and their behaviors very well. Soon after the whale dove down quickly after napping, he causally mentioned: "Sometimes when they do that, they will breach." To our luck, it wasn't even 10 seconds after he said that, that the whale breached out of the water 100 feet from the boat!! What a sight!! And even better, so many of our passengers were able to capture the beauty of it with their cameras and video cameras because the Captain has "the touch." We were able to identify this whale as Hornbill. Needless to say, we were able to witness one of the most rare and beautiful sights that the ocean has to offer.
I would like to thank all of our passengers who came out with us today. I would especially like to say congratulations to Carol and Bill Hatch from Massachusetts. They decided to come out whale watching with us while on their honeymoon and what a beautiful day for that! And thank you to all of the passengers who asked such great questions and showed so much enthusiasm for these creatures. If you would like to come whale watching with us, please call to make a reservation (207) 967-5507.
On our way in, the Captain decided to check out a Humpback first before heading into port. Again this whale was logging or sleeping when we approached it. As we watched it slowly swim through the water, it suddenly make a quick deep dive. Captain Gary, who has been the captain of the whale watching boat since 1998 knows these whales and their behaviors very well. Soon after the whale dove down quickly after napping, he causally mentioned: "Sometimes when they do that, they will breach." To our luck, it wasn't even 10 seconds after he said that, that the whale breached out of the water 100 feet from the boat!! What a sight!! And even better, so many of our passengers were able to capture the beauty of it with their cameras and video cameras because the Captain has "the touch." We were able to identify this whale as Hornbill. Needless to say, we were able to witness one of the most rare and beautiful sights that the ocean has to offer.
I would like to thank all of our passengers who came out with us today. I would especially like to say congratulations to Carol and Bill Hatch from Massachusetts. They decided to come out whale watching with us while on their honeymoon and what a beautiful day for that! And thank you to all of the passengers who asked such great questions and showed so much enthusiasm for these creatures. If you would like to come whale watching with us, please call to make a reservation (207) 967-5507.
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