The Salacia headed out into beautiful calm seas and amazing visibility. Our captain, Jon, decided to head southward which definitely paid off and found about twenty scatter humpback and fin whales in an area well west of Stellwagen. The trip started with some amazing synchronized breaching from a group of three humpback whales in the distance but most had settled down to some non-fluking dives and logging (sleeping) by the time we got close.
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| Breathing rainbows |
We spent the majority of our trip with a trio of whales (most likely the breachers) who lazily swam along, sometimes just hanging below the water for extended periods of time. The only way we could see them were by the glowing green of their white pectoral fins. It’s easy to see why collisions with vessels are a major threat; in fact one of these three whales had scars which are usually indicative of an interaction with a small boat’s propellers.
If you’re out on the water this spring and summer remember that whales are around and make sure that if you see a spout, than watch out. We were able to identify one individual as Perseid before moving on. We passed a few more whales on our way home including Tunguska and a curious young humpback that did a few dives under the boat and rolling alongside as if it were trying to figure out just what we were. It was an amazing end to a perfect spring whale watch.
—Tegan
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