August 30th, a variety show for the Granite State...

Today's weather was beyond perfect and the whales did not disappoint! We started our trip inshore of the Ledge with a single Fin whale and a Minke. We spent a short time with these whales before continuing closer to the Ledge.







As we continued on, we were surprised by an Ocean sunfish along the surface of the water. The Ocean Sunfish is the largest bony fish species. They are usually found lying more on their side at the surface, with the sun helping them with their digestive process. It is by far one of the most unique creatures that we see during our season.









As we approached a southern area of Jeffrey's Ledge, we saw 2 spouts in the distance. It was 2 Humpback whales. One was further south, so we tried to look at that individual first. We got a quick look at the whale before we realized that it defintiely had travelling on it's mind. This whale was identified as Hornbill, an large adult, first seen in 1977. Since Hornbill was travelling further south, we decided to try and find the other Humpback whale in the area...and we did! It was another adult named Mogul. Mogul was born in 1986 and has not been seen here for quite some time. It was so nice to see Mogul again. Mogul was more interested in feeding, creating several bubble clouds to corral food.



At one point, we were anxiously awaiting Mogul's return to the surface, when we saw two other whales surface in a slightly different location. These 2 whales were travelling together, and as they surfaced we realized what esle we had in the area...2 Northern Right whales! To see one indiviual is amazing, but to have 2 toghether was phenominal. Right whales are the rarest baleen whale on earth, with about 400 left on the planet. Our passengers were treated to Nature's best as we simply shut down our engines and enjoyed all that was around us.



As we were getting ready to leave the area, a spout in the distance caught our eye...it turned out to be a THIRD Right whale. A quick glimpse at this whale from afar showed propeller scars along it's left side, evidence of human interaction. A sad truth these whales face when migrating from feeding grounds to breeding grounds and vice versa. The propeller scars may be a key in trying to identify this whale. I'm still going through photos and will update you if any ID's have been made.

A special thanks to everyone who joined us...old friends and new ones alike. I'm wondering what surprises we will find tomorrow...


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