An orange glow was in the sky over the entire Monterey area as we set off for our 9am whale watch. After checking out a few sea otters in the harbor, we set off to explore the bay and beyond. We came across 2 humpbacks that seemed to be logging (sleeping). We next headed south to Carmel Bay where we came across a small pod of Risso’s dolphins (about 15 animals). As we watched the dolphins a purple striped jelly floated by, one of the rarer jelly species in the Monterey area. We headed back north toward Monterey and encountered another 3 humpback whales. These whales were more active than the previous pair; one even rolled over and slapped its pectoral fins for us. We spent a good half hour with these whales before heading back to the harbor and calling it a day.
-Naturalist Alfredo
