September 18 on the Granite State

People often wonder how long whales will stay in the area before they start migrating south for the winter. Many of the whales we see will actually stay well into October and even November feasting on as much food as possible before making the long journey hundreds of miles south for a few months. While the weather may be a bit cooler 20+ miles offshore, the whales are still taking full advantage of all that Jeffreys Ledges has to offer in terms of food productivity! Today was a prime example that whales continue to still be present!

Our first stop on whales today was a group of Atlantic white-sided dolphins. It was quite the nice surprise to find these whales as it has been a week since seeing our last pod of this species. This grouping of around 40 individuals were just milling about the area and was a great find to start our trip today.

Our next finding offshore was a baleen whale, it was a Fin whale. Did you know you only see about 1/3 of the entire length of a Fin whale at the surface of the water at any point in time? These extremely massive whales are such a delight to watch as the second largest animals in the world rise to the surface to get a few breaths of air before disappearing back under the water barely creating a disturbance. Such sleek, giant, mammals.
Just before heading back to the harbor we ended up getting a chance to see yet another baleen whale. There was a critically endangered Right whale out in the distance! As we sat and watched from afar as this whale continued it's daily activities of moving through the water, it was a moment to realize just how special of a sighting this was. Just about all the large whales we see during our adventures to Jeffreys Ledge are endangered animals, whales that were hunted in mass quantities during the days of whaling, and now which are federally protected here in the US waters. But to have a species that is so endangered scientists fear Right whales could potentially go extinct in our lifetime(!!!), such a rare sighting provides an incredible platform to have the public really see the impact and importance for conservation aspects for all whales. To be lucky enough to have one of these whales pass by the area, knowing that you are in the presence of THE rarest species of whales in the North Atlantic, really showcases the need for conservation and research organizations in the area. The Blue Ocean Society was created to, and continues to, strive to promote the necessity for the conservation of all marine life here in the New England area by educating the public and conducting research. Working in conjunction with such an organization combined with our dedicated life-long boat captains for our trips to Jeffreys Ledge brings hopes to protect such impressive mammals full-circle as to why these dedicated people do what they do. Providing the opportunity to see any type cetacean and sharing knowledge about some of the largest life in the world is an experience we hope will continue to be remembered and witnessed for years to come.

On our journey home we even passed by our final baleen whale of the day, a Minke whale. While we watched as this whale went down on a deeper dive it was a great reminder that whales can really be seen as any point of time, whether on our way out or coming back, from Jeffreys Ledge.



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