July 13 on the Granite State

Once again as we left Rye Harbor this morning we had fog. And not just a little bit of fog, but pee soup fog! Needless to say it was thick and I think everyone on board had a fleeting thought of, oh no what if it is like this the entire trip!?! Well our worries seized as soon enough we were out of the fog and had a few miles all around the boat which greatly improved our chances to find whales. It was a long journey but our travels were well worth it!

Our first looks at whales were a pair of Fin whales. We found these animals on the move but got some amazing looks as these animals made a turn and headed directly in towards the boat at one point. One of our animal's even passed along the stern of the boat giving some folks a super close up look at these large whales before going on a deeper dive! While watching these animals suddenly out of nowhere another whale surfaced. Where did it come from? It did not take long to realize what was passing through the area as we were spending time with our Fin whales.

A critically endangered North Atlantic Right whale had such come up to the surface for a breath of air!!!!! The excitement of this find is extraordinary as there are literally just over 400 individuals on earth for the ENTIRE population!!! To have the chance to see probably the most rare living creature you may ever encounter in your lifetime is a mind-blowing moment. 400 animals, literally hovering on the brink of extinction, as many fear these whales may not recover from the days of whaling. This species was considered the "right" whale to hunt since it was a very fat and slow moving animal that would float once dead. VERY strict boat restrictions are in place when a Right whale is spotted to make sure vessels of all shapes and sizes avoid any potential hazard for this highly endangered species. Knowing that there were more spouts from whales in the opposite direction of this Right whale and seeing that this whale was travelling further away from us, we changed course and eased our way out of the area to see what other animals may be around.

Soon enough we had yet another species of whale. We had found 2 Humpback whales. As we began to watch these animals they slowly were moving in towards each other until eventually they started to surface simultaneously, circling the area, coming up from the depth of the ocean filtering out salt water. These animals were feeding! We were able to get some great looks at both whales and just recently identified both animals. We had Vault and Wheat.

Vault coming towards the boat and going on a deeper dive

Wheat

Both of these animals are considered to be juveniles as Vault is only 2 years old and Wheat is 3 years old! What a wonderful find.

Our trip concluded when we came across 2 Minke whales. At that moment we realized we had a BALEEN GRAND SLAM! 4 species of whales, all baleen whales, and all in one single trip! Sometimes we are lucky enough to have a Grand Slam, but that typically involves a species of toothed-whales, usually dolphins, but not today. A very rare occurrence to see 4 different baleen whales, especially knowing we got some amazing looks at the majority of them.

This afternoon we were happy to see that the fog had cleared. However in its place was a bit more wind. The breeze had pushed away the fog but now the ocean had a bit more chop to it. With some hardy passengers, and some who toughed it out regardless, we continued on our way.

Our first stop was on a pair of Humpback whales. This pair was Diablo and her 2010 calf. We have been lucky enough to see this pair a handful of times this season on Jeffreys Ledge and it is always a special treat when we get a chance to see a mother and her recently born calf on a trip. One surfacing surprised just about everyone on the boat as both Diablo and her calf surfaced right next to the boat!!! You would think a calf, born this past winter, would still be on the smaller size. But not when you are a whale. A newborn Humpback whale can easily be 15ft in length. This calf has been spending the past few months feeding on its mother's very fatty milk, continuously gaining weight, and provided our passengers quite the look. But of course nothing could compare to Mom. An animal reaching up to 30tons heavy, reaching length of 40-50ft, and was right alongside the boat! Fantastic. But this activity was not the only whale activity going on.

While we were waiting for Diablo and her calf to resurface we suddenly found ourselves watching a pair of large Fin whales come to the surface not far away from the boat. 2 Fin whales appearing almost out of nowhere, but that was not all. There was a 3rd Fin whale in the area. Suddenly we realized we had 5 whales in our area, of multiple species! This typically does not happen as most times these large whales will move around on their own since they require so much food on a daily basis. But to have 3 Fin whales and 2 Humpback whales on either side of the boat is an unusual and awesome sight to say the least!

Our whale watch ended after spending some time with Vault, who we found again this afternoon. What a day on the water. We thank our passengers who toughed Mother Nature's conditions today, whether it be fog or a bit of sea breeze, to venture out toward Jeffreys Ledge to see some incredible sights today!

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