Wednesday 11-4-20 “A true embarrassment of riches”

Post voting solace on the Bay. While the country reeled over politics, 16 keen individuals found it better to spend the day venturing out into the high seas for some peace, quiet, and a little reverence for its creatures large and strange. Out in the middle of the bay, smack dab over the thalweg of the Monterey Submarine Canyon, a bounty of life awaited us as Captain Danny simultaneously found eight humpback whales, 800 Risso’s dolphin, and many hundreds more California Sea Lions. A true embarrassment of riches. What to watch first? As dolphin are harder to come by, we settled on them for some time before falling back on a pair of humps. So cooperative and predictable were these whales that we shut down the engines and enjoyed them in absolutely tranquility. Simply listening to their blows, as the air erupts from their lungs at over 100 miles per hour, fills the soul with a healthy sense of respect. The whales finished off their school of anchovies before moving on, just in time for us to start making our way home. Our megapod of dolphin was sighted again, and we got one last look at them before absconding for land. Worthy of note: blue skies, absence of wind, calm water and… what’s that? Bernie Sanders with the steel chair!–