Naturalist Blog

June 1st (Vessel New Horizon): Fields of whales. That is what awaited us early on into our morning trip. With occasional lunges, massive rafts of sea lions, and thousands of birds ranging from gulls, to shearwaters, fulmars, and of course the iconic pelican… today was not a good day to be an anchovy! Choppy seas added a moderate bounce and tone of adventure, and intermitent fog cast an eirie mood, high with anticipation. Overall, a fantastic trip, with Captain Tommy behind the helm, and Yohan serving as deckhand. Yours truly ranted and raved, as usual 🙂 -Naturalist Isaiah

Tuesday, May 31st (Vessel  Chubasco): The all-too-familiar Northwesterly winds loomed on the horizon, as Captain JJ led the charge on the mighty Chubasco. Barely 3 miles out, dozens and dozens of humpbacks surfaced this way and that, and while birds and sea lions abounded by hundreds or thousands, the SONAR continued to pick up massive schools of anchovies under the boat. After plenty of Fluke I.D.’s, the wind began to rise as a powerful sea breeze crept into the Bay. Satisfied with our looks, the timing couldnt have been more perfect. One and done for the ol’ “Chubby.” -Naturalist Isaiah

Two and a half days of immaculate seas and incredible whales has been a cherished respite in the midst of the constant barrage of NW winds these past few months, and as they say, “All Good Things…” Discovery sent out two boats this morning, making haste as impending wind loomed on the horizon. Barely three miles northwest of Monterey Harbor, Captain Danny spotted it: the frenzy. Somewhere between 15 and 20 humpback whales led the charge as some 500 hundred sea lions swarmed their position under the cover of birds by many hundreds more. This way and that, the whale zigged, zagged, and circle the wagons as anchovies by the thousands met their end. No one even seemed to noticed the DOZENS of other whales around us, spread far and wide. Truly, some 50 whales could be seen within 2…

Again, I am speechless. As the immaculate weather window threatens to snap shut (tomorrow) we were once again afforded three full trips of amazing seas, dozens of humpbacks close to the harbor, ravaging shoals of anchovies with frequent surface lunges amongst hundreds of sea lions and intermittent breaches and tail throws. Sporadic fog made an appearence today, though it did little to deter us from casually stumbling around amongst the hoards of humpbacks and their anchovy massacre. By my calculations, our evening trip alone saw the demise of (well over) 1,400,000 anchovies (according to the dietary needs of 25 humpbacks, 1000 gulls, 200 pelicans, and 300 sea lions) -Naturalist Isaiah

By wind, waves, and bravery, suffering for months, The Sea chashes in all her debts, all at once. Three trips we skated ‘or blue fields of glass, Three trips beholding the Humpbacks in mass. This way and that, and all day we saw, Anchovies by millions engulfed in the maw. The life soup of plankton, sea lion, and bird The barking and blows were all that we heard, Again comes a boil, erupting with fish, Leviathan frenzy, anchovy main dish. Tears to the sunset, this majesty done, Set sail for home, sick passengers: none. -Naturalist Isaiah

An interesting few days, as both Thursday and Friday boasted similar morning-only trips (afternoons cancelled by continued Northwesterly winds). Both saw roughly 15 humpbacks, whereas the former additionally saw 80 Risso’s Dolphin. Solid trips, good and hardy passengers, and no small supply of sea shanties 🙂 Today’s weather was merciful enough to allow for two trips(!). Seizing the weather window, we ventured out west, and were treated to at least 30 hunpback whales here and there, leap frogging between group of 2 to 4. Further to the southwest, we encountered a massive pod of dolphin, some 2,000 in all, mixed with Risso’s, Pacific White Sided, and Northern Right Whale Dolphin, and at one point a group of three humpbacks entered the fray, rolling around and interacting with their smaller cetacean cousins. Sadly enough, we had a schedule to keep, so…

Humpback city! Captain JJ took us out barely 15 minutes before we already started seeing whales. With today’s lumpy seas, we were fortunate to not have to drive any further. All told, we saw at least 25 Humpback Whales, with occasional surface lunge feeds, close passes, and a lone harbor porpoise. I’m still struggling to understand where the time went; quality whales and quality passengers sure make it fly! -Naturalist Isaiah

We departed for our Tuesday whale watch this week promptly at 9am. We wasted no time getting out into the bay and quickly saw the blows of humpback whales. We stopped for the first one we reach and immediately had another appear within fifteen feet of our bow followed by another coming up off our port side. We enjoyed these whales for a few minutes before repeated breaching and tail slapping drew us further away. We made it to the active whale just in time to see a horizontal lunge feed. The whale’s activity died down right after so we pressed on. We ended up following a trio of humpback whales that eventually crossed paths with another two. Just as they met, one of the whales gave us a big vertical lunge feed. After watching several more surfacing’s we decided…

Deja-vu… or shall I say, Deja-Blue! A remarkable repeat of yesterday: Dozens of Humpback Whales at the beginning, friendly 2 Fin Whales out over the Canyon..  and just as the wind and clock decried our return, a single Blue Whale appeared just close enough for us to get a single, fantastic look and with even a rare fluke up dive as the jaws of oceanography and time snapped shut and we had to run on home, victorious. Just outside the harbor, a pod of roughly 150 Risso’s Dolphin appeared, which we watched until the wind caught up to us, and slid right on into the harbor. Oh yeah, a few harbor porpoise were sighted along the way (and were as elusive as they usually are). Overall, a stellar trip, and a one and done day. -Naturalist Isaiah

Bluuuuuueeeeee Whaaaaaaallllessss! As the powerful northwesterly winds continue to pound our coast, they also continue to serve as the physical mechanism for the nutrient rich coastal upwelling that fuels our ecosystems. As a result (amongst many) we have started to see Blue Whales  out over the canyon the last few days. Not only the Blues, but their slightly smaller cousins, Fin Whales have also made an appearance. Today, our morning trip started out with several Humpback Whales, scattered about the “shallows” just a few miles north of the harbor. Not long into our first sighting, a humpback breached right next to the boat: full body, massive hang time, and a big splash riled the crowd with a big collective “Woa!!!” We watched the animal for a few minutes longer, until the pressure started to rise (and the atmospheric pressure began…