Captain Eric reports high clouds with sun at the Island, calm seas and a huge long-period swell that is supposed to peak on Tuesday with massive surf on west-facing beaches. None of this will affect the Condor Express when our next trip leaves the dock on Wednesday. Today’s sightings were “off the hook” and continue the current trend of sizeable populations of both blue whales and humpback whales in the Santa Barbara Channel. Eric’s scorecard reads: 7 humpback whales (more in the area), 2 blue whales (more…), 500 long-beaked common dolphins, and 1 lone bottlenose dolphin in The Lanes.
In the separation zone between The Lanes the Condor Express staff quickly located 2 wonderful blue whales. They were slowly travelling west to east and had very short (5 minute) down times. The two beasts were friendly, passed under the boat a few times and came alongside for bi-directional looks. The common dolphin herd was also found in this same region.
A short while later a single humpback whale was found and before long was joined by two more…all travelling west to east just like their larger cousins did earlier. A single bottlenose dolphin was located here too. Was it a solo offshore variety or a “lost” inshore dolphin? While that was being pondered two more humpback whales popped up.
South of The Lanes and (therefore) closer to Santa Cruz Island, a trio of additional humpback whales located the Condor Express and soon began a group salad-shredding party when a substantial free-floating giant kelp paddy was in their path. The usual spy-hopping, tail throwing and pectoral fin slapping sent the seaweed shreds in all directions. It was a fantastic thing to watch.
If you work with youth vegetarian groups or adolescent swim teams it might be fun to find a kelp paddy and see if the teens could imitate the kelping behavior of humpbacks. Film it and set up a YouTube channel…just a suggestion.
The last humpback to come into close proximity to the Condor, as there were lots of other spouts in binocular range, was a single speckled whale we call “Stinky.”
You never know what Mother Nature has in store. Bob Perry Condor Express
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