Image: A large ocean sunfish (Mola mola)
2023 07-09 SB Channel
Conditions were challenging today as it went from a morning with a moderate swell and no wind, to an afternoon with no swell and moderate winds. The good news: blue skies were around all day, as were the dolphins. Closely watched species today: 5000 long-beaked common dolphins, 1 humpback whale and 3 ocean sunfish (Mola mola). The lone whale was spotted by our deckhand, photographer and whale-spotter, Anna. We are sad to announce this was Anna’s last trip with the Condor Express today, and we all wish her the absolute best. She will be missed. She is part of the new breed of powerful women of the ocean.
As the above numbers would tell, we had dolphin herds all around us today, some pods were large and some were mega. This kicked off only ¼ mile south of the harbor. With these “local” dolphin sightings we also had great looks at 2 of 3 very large ocean sunfish (Mola mola), seen today.
A trip around the NOAA East Channel Buoy brought the largest pods of dolphins that found the Condor Express today. At this point in the trip, we enjoyed seeing these marvelous animals jumping through the waves and wind.
On the way home, the aforementioned heroine of the day, Anna, located a single humpback whale and we had some decent looks before docking.
You never know what Mother Nature has in store.
Bob Perry
Condor Express, and
CondorExpressPhotos.com
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