We departed the harbour excited to check out the Humpback Whales that have been in abundance the past few days. Just halfway between Canada and US, on the international border, we found some humpbacks.
As we watched the whales, more and more blows were spotted in the distance, in all directions. Then we were surrounded. There were pairs of whales, trios, some swimming solo. Some of the humpbacks were breaching and some throwing their tails in the air. We would watch one near us and then notice one in the distance, we didn’t know where to look!
The wind was blowing from the direction of the whales. This had the neat effect of carrying the mist from their blows towards us. With each exhale we felt the cool refreshing spritz of whale breath. Despite being coated in a thin layer of whale mucas, we didn’t smell fishy!
For the afternoon tours we headed out in search of the same gathering of Humpback Whales. They were a bit further out after being carried out with the ebbing tide. The whales were in the same formation, a dispersed group with multiple pairs hanging out and diving together. It was as if they were catching up after their long migration from the tropical waters to the south.
For the whale watching boats in the area it was a nice way to share the whales, each boat having its own whales to watch. We were treated to some more splashes and a few close up views as they moved to us.
We ended off the trip with a tour of the Race Rocks Marine Protected Area where we found two Elephant Seals sparring. Juvenile male Elephant Seals will practice fighting, training for the day when they have to assert themselves as the dominant male and leader of the colony. Race Rocks was also full of Harbour seals and their pups. How cute.
What an amazing day!