2014 09-03 SB Channel
The glassy and windless conditions we had as we departed Santa Barbara Harbor did not last long. By 11 am a moderate breeze and light chop prevailed. Luckily we found our first of many long-beaked common dolphins right away. Later in the day one of the pods was a nursery pod and some of the youngsters were tan/brown color with no stripes yet, and fetal folds were visible. Our sharp-eyed Captain Eric located our first of 5 humpback whale spouts as he steered the Condor Express into the northeastern Santa Barbara Channel and a region affectionately called "The Flats." Soon his one spout became an adult and small juvenile, and then another adult with a juvenile. A 5th whale breached twice in the distance but we could not leave the whale show with our 4 amazing beasts and were content in knowing there were a lot of humpback whales around the zone.
The big show began when one adult-juvenile humpback pair kicked into high speed and headed directly at the second adult-juvenile humpback pair who were aimed directly at them. It was like a 1950's teen movie with whales instead o f hot rods "playing chicken." Everyone held their breath and trained their eyeballs at the potential impact point. Would the breach? throw their tails? slap their pectorals? or just ignore each other? Answer: As hundreds of shearwaters, cormorants, dolphins and sea lions magically showed up, the whales lunge fed on the surface. Soon their ballooned-out bellies were floating in plain view. The whales repeated their lunges several times. At one point Captain Eric hit the throttle lever and put the Condor Express in reverse. Whaaa? I was thinking. Instantly two fully distended adult humpbacks were on the surface directly in front of our bow with an up close look at the ventral groove blubber. I've said it before, but I'll stand by it: it was a Nat Geo kind of day.
Minke whales were in the area but we did not get great looks. And just outside the Harbor we had about a dozen large inshore bottlenose common dolphins. Low stratus was around all day until we got back to dry land.
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A humpback whale comes to the surface with its oral pouch distended and full of water and anchovies.
Megaptera novaeangliae 2014 09-03 SB Channel-077
A belly-up humpback whale shows its expanded ventral groove blubble. Underwater and out of view water is being ejected from the pouch and anchovies are retained inside the baleen
Megaptera novaeangliae 2014 09-03 SB Channel-072
A belly-up humpback whale shows its expanded ventral groove blubble. Underwater and out of view water is being ejected from the pouch and anchovies are retained inside the baleen. Numerous black-vented shearwaters scatter as the whale surfaces.
Megaptera novaeangliae 2014 09-03 SB Channel-082
A very friendly humpback whale takes a dive close to its fan club
Megaptera novaeagliae & passengers 2014 09-03 SB Channel-a-034
A spouting humpback heads directly at the boat and camera
Megaptera novaeangliae 2014 09-03 SB Channel-022
Humpback waterfall
Megaptera novaeangliae 2014 09-03 SB Channel-040
Another friendly and close visit by a humpback whale
Megaptera novaeangliae& passengers 2014 09-03 SB Channel-097
Condor Express deck hand Augie uses a gaff to retrieve mylar balloons that have blown out to sea, lost their gas, and were a drifting nuisance and potentially harmful to marine life. BAN HELIUM BALLOONS !
Augie gets a balloon debris trash 2014 09-03 SB Channel-a-001
