Today was AMAZING, no other word to describe it. It's funny because I still get so excited when I see wildlife out in the Bay and our guests can tell, they usually ask me how long I've been working for Island Quest (10 Years) because of the level of excitement and enthusiasm I have for what we do.
So! Today was awesome... The Island Quest had a Minke Whale (approx. 30ft) around White Island, the shape of the dorsal fin identified it as a different Minke whale than the one that we have been watching regularly. The Island Quest stayed for over an hour with the friendly giant and to our surprise "he" wanted to check us out as much as we wanted to see him. The Whale SPY HOPPED! An
amazing thing to see, it is thought that whales do this to get a better view of what is on the surface, whether it be prey in the case of some species of whale or to watch the whale watchers in our case!
Calm Seas
So! Today was awesome... The Island Quest had a Minke Whale (approx. 30ft) around White Island, the shape of the dorsal fin identified it as a different Minke whale than the one that we have been watching regularly. The Island Quest stayed for over an hour with the friendly giant and to our surprise "he" wanted to check us out as much as we wanted to see him. The Whale SPY HOPPED! An
amazing thing to see, it is thought that whales do this to get a better view of what is on the surface, whether it be prey in the case of some species of whale or to watch the whale watchers in our case!This particular Minke was travelling quite a bit though not staying down for too long of a duration, the guests onboard were lucky enough to see, hear and even smell "him" as "he" exhaled at the surface.
Not only were the whales great (at one point we were watching 2 Minkes at the same time) but we also saw 5 American Bald Eagles on our short but wildlife-packed 3 hour departure. Seals were swimming around the boat on many occasions while we were watching othe
r marine life and taking in the great scenery around East Quoddy Head Lighthouse. Notice the immature eagle sitting on the rocks in front of the lighthouse.
r marine life and taking in the great scenery around East Quoddy Head Lighthouse. Notice the immature eagle sitting on the rocks in front of the lighthouse. The tide was on it's way in so the seals (Harbour and Gray) were mostly in the water around Splitting Knife and locally known Ram's Ledge on Casco Bay Island. Being very inquisitive, the seals often watch us as much as we watch them!
I'll leave you with some video clips as well as some photos that I couldn't help but post from today, also a note to say THANK YOU so much to the great folks that have gone Cruisin' with the Whales. The emails, photos and comments are all wonderful, we hope to see you out again!
Eagle
Calm SeasFriendly Giants, upclose and personal!
