A large whale assortment today!

2017 07-22 SB Channel

A large whale assortment today!  2 humpback whales, 3 fin whales and 1* blue whale were closely watched in addition to 800 long-beaked common dolphins.  Captain Dave and his crew reported very nice weather and sea conditions in the Santa Barbara Channel.

The first center of attention was southeast of Santa Barbara harbor where scattered pods of dolphins were seen over a wide area.  Two humpback whales were in the mix, and consisted of a mother and calf.  The calf had a distinctive white (ventral) tail color and matching white pectoral flippers.  But the mom surprised us all with an “out of the blue” massive, full-body breach not too far from the boat.

Moving further southeast a single, very friendly fin whale came to the boat and “mugged” us.  This may be the same animal that exhibited similar friendly behavior a week or so ago.  We were north of Anacapa and in The Lanes at the time.

Continuing east, our deckhand Tasha located the tall spout of a single giant blue whale.  We kept a respectful distance and had great looks at this whale.  There was *another blue whale in the distance, further east, which we did not have time to persue.  Just after watching the giant blue whale we had a second friendly fin whale come by the boat, and while we were watching this large whale in clear Santa Barbara cobalt water, a third fin whale came up from under the second.  What a breath-taking view!  The two fin whales moved slowly east as the Condor Express headed northwest and back to the harbor.

You never know what Mother Nature has in store. Bob Perry Condor Express