An old friend and favorite

Conditions were about as good as they can get as we ventured out towards Jeffrey's Ledge aboard the Granite State this past Saturday. The weather provided great visibility for searching the horizon for whale blows and with calm winds, the ocean looked like a sea of glass. We were lucky enough to come across a Humpback whale named Gondolier who was seen earlier this season. It was great to see that this whale was still actively searching for food on and around Jeffrey's Ledge. Without any chop/waves in the water we were able to get some terrific looks at this whale's white flippers as Gondolier pass alongside the boat. As we continued our time with Gondolier, Katie our naturalist aboard the boat, saw another spout from a different whale out in the distance. We watched Gondolier for one more surfacing as this whale continued it's journey further offshore before heading over to see what other whale was in the area.



Once we got in the vicinity of this second whale, which also turned out to be a Humpback whale, we realized this whale clearly seemed to be on a mission. It kept coming up to the surface just once or twice before diving back down under the water for a few more minutes. The first few looks we had on the Granite State the whale was not fully lifting it's tail out of the water. However, the moment we saw the underside of the tail, the crew became extremely excited. It was our friend Flask!

We knew Flask had been seen in a more northern portion of Jeffrey's Ledge a few weeks ago and were pleasantly surprised to see this whale clearly had done some moving about, as all whales tend to do, and ended up in the same area our trip had taken us. For many, many years, Flask has been seen by the Blue Ocean Society at least once a season and so for all of us aboard the Granite State it was great to see firsthand an "old friend" return yet again to our area here in the Gulf of Maine.

It was a great day out on the water with beautiful weather and great sightings. We all look forward to seeing whatelse is in store for us this season with hopes of seeing other familiar whales return and hopefully some new whales as well!

Update from today's trip (6/14): We had some very hardy passengers aboard the Granite State who weren't afraid of getting a little wet as we headed out of Rye Harbor this morning. We had some showers off and on throughout the trip but still had some great findings out on the water. Not too long after passing through the Isles of Shoals we spotted a Minke whale. A few times when this whale surfaced it was charging through the water, most likely chasing down fish, giving all of us a chance to see just how easily they can maneuver in their liquid world. While watching this whale we also spotted another Minke whale further off in the distance. Then out of nowhere one of our crew members, Jodi, spotted a very tall and column-like whale spout. We had found a fin whale!

At first this particular whale was being very tricky when it came to determining it's swimming pattern. One moment it would surface on our left, not go on a deeper dive, and then show up on our right a good distance away. As time and patience continued we got some amazing looks at this animal! No wonder there were a few whales in the area because as we continued on our way after spending some time with this fin whale our fish finder on board showed the boat passing over a MASSIVE amount of food (fish of some variety). This school of fish covered an area of 200ft in the water column. That's a whole lot of fish food!!

Further offshore we came across a second fin whale and spent time on the right hand side of this whale allowing us to check out the white portion of this whale's lower jaw and body.

Another good day with whales and some very prepared passengers with coats, blankets, and smiling faces!