June 4 on the Granite State

The weather provided a fresh northeasterly wind for us this morning as we headed out of Rye Harbor but the cool wind kept visibility pristine and we could search the horizon for whale activity for miles! We saw spouts out in the distance and realized the number kept increasing. At the end of the day we spent time with 4 Humpback whales and 2 Fin whales.

We started with a cluster of Humpback whales that seemed to be up all at the same time and go on deeper dives at the same time. To add into the mix the animals were circling a broad area so figuring out which whale was where took a bit of time. We got some amazing views as a few times we were surrounded by whales from all sides of the boat. The big excitement was that there was a mother and her calf amongst this group. It was Shark and her new calf born this past winter!

Shark and her calf going on a deep dive

Both mom and calf made the long journey from the waters off the Dominican Republic in the Caribbean to the feeding grounds here in the Gulf of Maine, specifically Jeffreys Ledge. It has been over 3 years since we last saw Shark on the Ledge and we were ecstatic to have her back in the area, with a calf no less! The other 2 Humpback whales meandering the area were Bayou and a whale that has yet to be named.

Bayou


A Humpback whale sighted on July 4th, 2010 and has returned again this year

The non-named Humpback whale was actually sighted a few times on Jeffreys Ledge last year and we were pleasantly surprised to have this animal return for another season. With some wonderful looks at all these whales we moved on to some more spouts in the distance.

Not only were there a handful of Humpback whales in the area, not too far away we spent some time with 2 Fin whales! These animals are massive creatures and watching them glide through the water weighing 60+ tons a piece is quite the sight.

The dorsal fin from one of our Fin whales

This traveling pair of Fin whales was a great way to end our day as we got a chance to spend time with 2 of the second largest animals in the world! Perhaps even more exciting was the fact that we were able to identify one of the whales as a female named Prong.

The dorsal fin of Prong the Fin whale. Note this dorsal fin is a bit more hook-shaped than the other whale it was traveling with.

Prong was first sighted by the Blue Ocean Society in 2000 when she was seen with a calf, so we know she is a female. We are glad she has made her presence known once again this year back on the Ledge!

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