Sunday 8/29 on the Atlantic Queen

Watching Atlantic white-sided dolphins

Today's weather and seas were gorgeous!  The conditions were extra-special after having a few less-than-ideal Sundays in a row (see this post from last Sunday with a pic of folks all bundled up in rain gear and you'll get the idea). Spirits were high, and the whales were spectacular!

Fin whale

We started out with some great, close looks at a slow-moving minke whale, with another minke nearby.  We then spotted a fin whale that we eventually got some good looks at - it definitely seemed to be chasing some bait, as it was moving erratically, taking short dives and spending little time at the surface.

Then we found some Atlantic white-sided dolphins - a large pod of well over 100 that came close to the boat several times.  We spent awhile watching these small (7-9' long!) toothed whales, and got to see a couple calves swimming next to their mothers.

Atlantic white-sided dolphin

Atlantic white-sided dolphin in hot pursuit of fish

Onward to a blow in the distance, which turned out to be the distinctive v-shaped blow of a right whale. We stayed a respectful distance away from this endangered whale (only 425 are estimated remaining in the world) but did get to see its broad flukes as it gracefully dove before we left.

All that, plus the sunny skies and calm seas were definitely enough to make a trip, but as we headed for home, we spent a solid 15 minutes or more being followed by more Atlantic white-sided dolphins! Not only did they surf in our wake, but they astounded us with several huge leaps - it was almost like watching dolphin fireworks at one point!

What a way to round out the trip. As our busy season starts to wind down, a day like this makes me appreciate even more how fortunate I am to spend so time on a boat in the summer and how lucky we all are to have such a rich variety of marine life in the Gulf of Maine.

Thanks to all who came aboard today!

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