2017 07-06 SB Channel
The wildlife sightings today took place on both sides of the Santa Barbara Channel. From the oil platforms near Carpinteria to the sea cliffs near the eastern end of Santa Cruz Island, the Condor Express found warm sun and glassy seas…ideal for finding and viewing whales. The totals for the day included: 8 humpback whales, 4 blue whales, 1 fin whale and 500 long-beaked common dolphins.
The oil platform sightings occurred north of Platform C where a “mother lode” of humpback whales and several hundred common dolphins were found spread out across at least a mile of ocean. Although only 8 humpback whales were reported and watched closely, as many as a dozen more spouts were all around the zone. Among the 8 watched, we saw “Rope” and her calf. Rope did that fairly uncommon “chomping” or baleen-cleaning behavior on the surface, as we sometimes see among humpbacks.
Across the Channel Captain Dave brought us to the blue whale feeding grounds. Again, as with the humpbacks, we closely watched 4 giant blues, but there were many more all around the area. The fin whale, a small individual, was also seen here and it circled the boat so everyone clearly saw its white patch. One giant blue was a regular fluker.
You never know what Mother Nature has in store. Bob Perry Condor Express