The Condor Express is a magnet for extremely friendly whales.
A great day in the land of the mammals
It was all about long beaked common dolphins everywhere we roamed around the northeast Santa Barbara Channel. Captain Dave estimated well over 3,000, and there were scads of little calves in the mix. One was so small Dave commented that it was about the same size as the black vented shearwaters that were buzzing around the herds. So after watching these little mammals mixed with a lot of California sea lions, on a sunny clear day without a hint of stratus, it was 2nd Captain Eric’s sharp eyes (and binoculars) that eventually put us on the humpback whales. We watched 3 humpbacks today and had great looks at the two Eric spotted. In fact one of the two surfaced within a few yards of the Condor Express on two separate occasions and, after the initial shock, gave extremely close looks to all the #whale fans on board. Is this Fall weather and local mammals wonderful or what ! There were a few more Velella velella jellies today than earlier in the week.
It was a spectacular trip. You never know what Mother Nature has in store. Bob Perry Condor Express [Photos from today’s adventure should be online tomorrow sometime]