2015 08-20 SB Channel
1135 am found us due east of Habitat entering the southern end of The Flats. At first we saw a single humpback spout, and about 500 or so #dolphins. Soon two more #whales joined the first one and one of the trio breached several times, some close to the boat. Another of the trio had two deep, old wounds on its tail stock...was it an old entanglement or a result of a ship strike and huge propeller?
We stopped for a few moments at 1245 pm to watch a small but friendly Minke whale cracking the glassy surface in front of our bow. Soon another 250 long-beaked common dolphins came through the zone, and an initial sighting of 2 more humpbacks was made here. A small hot spot that was highly motile developed, and the dolphins, sea lions and seabirds worked the anchovies into a ball so the whales could feed below the surface. Two additional whales soon joined the hot spot making a quartet of humpbacks. One of the new comers was the whale we sighted earlier with the tail stock wounds. At this point we were 10 miles or so southeast of Habitat and had no idea what was going to happen next.
A single new humpback whale with a depression behind its head and an associated "camel" hump near the dorsal fin and an entirely light gray body, joined the quartet and very quickly came over to the Condor for a very friendly approach. As if waiting for the gray humpback to show the way, the rest of the whales soon followed suit and we got mugged by all 5 in fairly nice clear water. This is the stuff that makes your pulse quicken for sure.
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Clear water look at a very friendly humpback whale
Megaptera novaeangliae & passengers 2015 08-20 SB Channel-z-082
Two friendly humpback whales in clear water - very close approach
Megaptera novaeangliae & passengers 2015 08-20 SB Channel-z-020
California sea lion and friend
Megaptera novaeangliae & Zalophus californianus 2015 08-20 SB Channel-z-003
Two friendly humpback whales
Megaptera novaeangliae 2 & passengers 2015 08-20 SB Channel-z-015
Humpback whales side-by-side
Megaptera novaeangliae 2015 08-20 SB Channel-b-021
Whole body view in clear blue water - humpback whale
Megaptera novaeangliae 2015 08-20 SB Channel-z-031
Clear water whole body humpback whale
Megaptera novaeangliae 2015 08-20 SB Channel-z-038
Two humpback whales in clear water
Megaptera novaeangliae 2015 08-20 SB Channel-z-054
Two humpback whales in clear water
Megaptera novaeangliae 2015 08-20 SB Channel-z-055
Surprisingly few whale fans were on the bow to see this friendly humpback
Megaptera novaeangliae 2015 08-20 SB Channel-z-073
Image 4 of 4: a humpback whale breaches - splashdown !
Megaptera novaeangliae breach splashdown 2015 08-20 SB Channel-006
A humpback rises up and sends the shearwaters scattering
Megaptera novaeangliae& Puffinus opisthomelas 2015 08-20 SB Channel-001
A humpback whale is seen playing in giant kelp
Megaptera novaeangliae & Macrocystis pyrifera kelping 2015 08-20 SB Channel-e-001
MegapteranovaeangliaeMacrocystispyriferakelping2015Channel001
