A giant blue whale, a giant fin whale, a trio of large humpback whales, and some dolphins.
- Bob Perry
- 2 days ago
- 2 min read
2026 05–09 SB Channel
We ran across the entire channel and ended up pretty close to Potato Harbor on the E End of Santa Cruz Island, just N of the lanes. There was a thick, gray, stratus layer all day. Seas were bumpy until we got into the lee of the island. A very light and gentle breeze came and went. Sightings were phenomenal: 75 common dolphins, 1 large ocean sunfish (Mola mola), 1 giant blue whale, 1 very large fin whale, and 3 humpback whales.
As has been the case with dolphins all week, they are mostly scattered out in small groups of two or three, we did find one pod of about 20, N of the lanes. Perhaps they are searching for small patches of food scattered across an otherwise fairly barren stretch of ocean?
Not far from the 20 dolphins we slowed and spent some time watching a very large ocean sunfish (Mola mola) feeding on one individual purple sailor jelly (Velella velella) at a time, right next to the Condor Express. The fish, an otherwise docile beast, seemed to single out 1 sailor among the many. It would slowly approach, and then suck the morsel into it’s mouth like a vacuum cleaner, then retain the food while expelling the water that was also taken in as “by-catch.” For reference, I have an online gallery of all things Mola mola (among other photogenic phish) using the following link:
Purple sailor jellies, Velella velella, (among other interesting cnidaria) are found here:
After moving a bit S, we crossed the separation zone of the 2 lanes and saw a gigantic spout which could only be from one possible animal on the planet: the giant blue whale. It was a very large adult that was feeding subsurface. As is typical for the species in our region, it spent a long time on the surface between soundings swimming in a circular pattern that included many quick/short dives. At one point, certainly by random chance, the beast came to the surface very close to the boat! OMG. (See today’s photo above for a pano of this location and blue whale scene).
Out of nowhere, the second largest whale on the planet, a single very big, fin whale, popped up close to its blue cousin. They were close enough, according to Captain Eddy, to get both of them in the same camera frame. What a remarkable encounter, and one of the big highlights of the day.
We moved to W a little bit and found three “very relaxed” humpback whales, they were almost certainly a mother with her calf plus an escort. The trio was logging on the surface making it perfect for those whale selfies not available on dry land.
On the way back…a few more scattered dolphins.
You never know what mother nature has in store.
Bob Perry
