2014 08-12 SB Channel
Reunion Time in the Channel
Captain Dave left the harbor and pointed it east this morning under bright sunny skies and great visibility...you could see the islands. Our first several stops were on the multiple small feeding pods of long beaked common dolphins. Great looks were had in clear blue water as these small cetaceans came over and ran with the Condor Express. Calves were present in almost every pod. It was through the "trick" of searching through these dolphin pods that we located the first humpback whale today. Guess who? (The photo above probably gave it away). As we watched our old pal Rope, additional spouts were beginning to pop up to the south of our position. Next we watched a pair of whales that had no recognizable markings, but they were dark and had 8 minute down times. Further south more spouts. This time it was two separate sightings, first "Top Notch," and then "Lucky." So 3 of our 5 whales are regularly seen and, in the case of Rope who we have been watching for at least 12 years, old friends.
Again we saw purple, or "by the wind" sailors on the surface (Velella velella) but not in great numbers. By early afternoon a slight breeze from the west began to fill in and we continued the search...locating several more pods of long beaked common dolphins before it was time to head back to the dock.
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Read MoreCaptain Dave left the harbor and pointed it east this morning under bright sunny skies and great visibility...you could see the islands. Our first several stops were on the multiple small feeding pods of long beaked common dolphins. Great looks were had in clear blue water as these small cetaceans came over and ran with the Condor Express. Calves were present in almost every pod. It was through the "trick" of searching through these dolphin pods that we located the first humpback whale today. Guess who? (The photo above probably gave it away). As we watched our old pal Rope, additional spouts were beginning to pop up to the south of our position. Next we watched a pair of whales that had no recognizable markings, but they were dark and had 8 minute down times. Further south more spouts. This time it was two separate sightings, first "Top Notch," and then "Lucky." So 3 of our 5 whales are regularly seen and, in the case of Rope who we have been watching for at least 12 years, old friends.
Again we saw purple, or "by the wind" sailors on the surface (Velella velella) but not in great numbers. By early afternoon a slight breeze from the west began to fill in and we continued the search...locating several more pods of long beaked common dolphins before it was time to head back to the dock.
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An underwater look at a common dolphin
Delphninus capensis UW 2014 08-12 SB Channel-a-060
