Giant blue whales, humpback and dolphins: NICE!

2022 06-23 SB Channel

The Channel weather this week calls for dense fog in the morning burning off to sunny skies after 12 noon. Seas had a light chop today and the breeze picked up as we approached Santa Rosa Island. Sightings were phenomenal: 4000 long-beaked common dolphins, 1 humpback whale, 3+ giant blue whales, and 1 ocean sunfish (Mola mola). Three captains and one retired captain made up our crew today: First Captain Dave, Captain Devin, and Captain Colton. Lots of experience on board!

Scattered dolphin herds, including a couple of mega pods and some very active hot spots, were observed as we transected the Channel and returned. Especially interesting were the hot spots which were between 2 and 5 miles offshore and featured feeding dolphins and sea birds including brown pelicans…very productive!

Just after noon, Captain Dave spotted a lot of breaching and aerial activity from a distant humpback whale. By the time we closed the distance and got into viewing position, the little juvenile had stopped breaching and assumed a regular up and down cycle. Very nice to see!

After the humpback, we spotted and quickly watched a medium sized ocean sunfish (Mola mola). Seas were a bit choppy but the looks at this unusual fish were still very good.

We back-tracked a few miles, and ran east over water that we had just traversed, and found lots of blue whale spouts in the area. We were about 3 or 4 miles off the coast of Santa Rosa Island. Our patience paid dividends as we closely watched 2 giant blue whales, a large adult and a smaller juvenile. It was wonderful to see these seasonal giants.

You never know what Mother Nature has in store. Bob Perry Condor Express, and www.CondorExpressPhotos.com