The very tip of a California sea lion’s nose is seen poking out of the water as its big eye looks directly at the camera. Sea lions are the best.
Loads of Cetaceans and a Nice Day, too!
Our first of three humpback whales (with a few more seen in the distance) was an adult unfamiliar to us. It was on a mission heading southwest to a hot spot about 5 miles away. Down times were negligible and surface time was spent racing. Funny what hunger with do to motivate us mammals. Later we saw the mother-calf pair of Scarlet and Shorty. They, too were heading from the deep southeastern Santa Barbara Channel at a rapid pace towards the feeding area previously described. Here and there we saw Minke whales, perhaps 5 #whales with more in the distance. At one point, near the hot spot, a Minke whale dove under the boat so close it left fluke prints on the water next to the starboard hull. It was a big one and it turned around and came towards us again so every cetacean fan on board could brag about the encounter. Long beaked common dolphins were more plentiful today as well. We had a few small pods then two rather large pods, and Captain Dave estimated the total at or near 1,000 #dolphins. The sky started out mostly cloudy with small chop on the ocean surface. This quickly dissipated and it became lovely: bright, warm sun and near glassy seas. Of course the water was very blue outside as it has been for the past month. It was a great day on the water and I’ll have the photos posted up sometime this Saturday.
You never know what Mother Nature has in store. Bob Perry Condor Express
PS: please recall that at this time of year we do not run trips on Mondays or Tuesdays.
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