2016 07-03 SB Channel
A festive 4th of July celebratory weekend has captured Santa Barbara and loads of party cruises are running in the afternoon and evening after the usual Condor Express morning whale watch returns to the dock. This means a lot of extra effort and long hours for the crew and Captain Eric. Nonetheless, he reports a fantastic cetacean watching day again today. Wow!
Out on the 50-fathom curve this morning the sightings of scattered groups of long-beaked common dolphins and a few humpback whales began and continued as “stepping stones” across the Santa Barbara Channel to a more concentrated hot spot near The Lanes. Sea conditions were fabulous and skies were sunny and warm.
Out near The Lanes, as we saw yesterday, there were an abundance of humpback whales concentrated on feeding. Eric reported closely watching 10, but quickly reported as many as 25 in the immediate area. Dolphins were more concentrated here too, and 100 short-beaked common dolphins were also seen in the mix. Before long a giant blue whale, the one we’ve been seeing with the shaved dorsal fin and notched tail flukes, popped up and stayed around the Condor Express giving great looks. This whale is a consistent tail-fluker and proved that to be true again today.
You never know what Mother Nature has in store. Bob Perry Condor Express
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