Five humpback whales south of the harbor.
- Bob Perry
- Sep 26
- 2 min read
2025 09–26 SB Channel
Similar to yesterday, there was a high stratus layer all day and no wind. There was a small bump from the W which we felt when we ran in that direction. Totals for the day: 2000 common dolphins, 5 humpback whales and 3 California sea lions. (See the note at the end of this report to learn the identities of most of the whales).
A medium-sized pod of dolphins was tracking E when it discovered the Condor Express and allowed us to ride along so they could surf our wake. These little cetaceans will surf anything, but then that could be said of most marine mammals.
The most W of the Summerland/Montecito oil platforms, platform C, Charlie, was the location of a lot of the action took place today. There were several birdnados with dolphins and a couple of interesting whales. The first whale was a juvenile that spent a lot of time lunge feeding, only to stop momentarily for a big breach. A second whale was attracted to the area and joined the first whale in simultaneously lunge feeding. A third whale made a cameo appearance before heading W by itself.
Moving W about 2 miles we located a single adult humpback. Almost immediately, and unexpectedly, it took to the air with a monster breach that was so close to the bow of the Condor Express it sent chills down Captain Dave’s spine. (See today’s photo for an example…of the breach, not the spine).
Returning to an E course heading, The last whale of the day, and the last dolphin pod, were observed.
You never know what mother nature has in store.
Bob Perry
NOTES: A big thanks to our friend Susanne, a photographer and extraordinary and happywhale aficionado, for providing some IDs:
The whale that mugged us: CRC-17693, was first recorded in 2018 and has been observed from Santa Barbara CA down to Cabo San Lucas.
The next one, HW-MN0444572, was recorded in Hawaii last year before it made the crossing to the Santa Barbara Channel.
HW-MN0503870 was reported twice previously here in the Santa Barbara Channel by two individuals on the Condor Express: our friend Mark, and yours truly!
Finally, HW-MN0503839, was first recorded this year in the Santa Barbara Channel, and also observed in San Diego, California.
